Brendan stared open-mouthed as he tried to process what the man had said. “Are you sure?”
Kuan shook his head. “No. That is only one outcome. If she is caught by the hunters then this will not happen. If she refuses to accept the man who has been chosen for her, then this will not happen. If she leaves where she is now, before finding out about this man, then this will not happen. There are too many variables that could affect things and change the outcome, Brendan. I speak to you in the hopes of you being able to help her to her rightful path.”
“Fuck.” Brendan sat down, shaking his head in disbelief. “My little Rose is that powerful?”
“Yes.” Kuan nodded. “But there is someone who will try and stop this. Someone who is a threat not only to Rose but to every living being in this world.”
“Damn.” Brendan ran his fingers through his hair roughly. “You like to give a man a hard job, don’t you?”
“I do not usually become involved. However, this affects us all and if the world is ever to obtain peace then we must make sure Rose fulfils her role.”
“We?” Brendan frowned down at the old man.
“Yes, we.” Kuan shrugged. “I’m afraid I’m not leaving this burden only to you, Brendan. I’m leaving with you in the morning.”
“What?” Brendan stood again, shocked. “No, you’re not. I don’t mean to sound unkind but you’re old and won’t be able to withstand my pace. I have a motorbike stashed a few streets away and once I leave I’ll only be stopping when I can’t carry on.”
“I assure you, Wolf, I’m much stronger than I look.”
“I work alone or with people I know and trust.” Brendan shook his head furiously. “Sorry, Kuan, but neither of those are you.”
“I understand your reluctance but I am going with you. You need to know that no matter what you say, or try to do, that I will be with you on this journey.”
Brendan growled, the rumble starting in his massive chest and making its way up and out of his throat. “What’s that supposed to mean? What I try to do.”
“You’re thinking you’ll pretend to go to sleep and as soon as I am, then you’ll leave.” Kuan looked calmly up at him, causing goosebumps to rise on Brendan’s skin. “Or, you’ll try and knock me out and then leave, or . . .”
Brendan huffed. “Okay, okay, I get it. You can obviously see where my thinking is going but that doesn’t mean you’re coming with me.”
Turning quickly, using his Wolf speed, Brendan raced towards the door he’d come in. As his hand reached for the bolts, he was stunned when Kuan’s hand covered his. The strength in the man’s grip was even more surprising as Brendan reached with his other hand to try and remove it. Kuan held on, tightening his grasp as pain lanced through Brendan’s hand and wrist.
“I told you, Wolf, I’m not what you expect when you look at me.” Kuan removed his grip, smiling up at Brendan. “I am going with you so please stop this nonsense.”
Brendan stared hard at the man as he looked up at him. “If you do anything, and I mean anything, to put my daughter in danger then I won’t think twice. I’ll end you.”
“I assure you my intentions are pure.” Kuan walked back through to the living room. “You’re a Wolf, Brendan, use those abilities of yours and see if you can find any deceit within me. I guarantee you I am on your side and I think there’s going to be a moment in time when my assistance is going to be crucial.”
Brendan did as the man suggested, sending his power out to seek out any lies. He saw none. “Very well, you can come. But it won’t just be us two.”
“Yes, I know.” Kuan gave a knowing smile. “Her savior, Seth, will be joining us.”
“How the hell . . .” Brendan stopped, shaking his head. “Never mind.”
He pulled his sat phone out and pressed speed dial two. “I’ve a call to make.”
“Yes, you do,” Kuan replied as he left the living room. “I’ll give you some privacy.”
The call was answered almost immediately. “Brendan, what’s wrong?”
Seth’s voice was clipped as he answered, knowing Brendan only called him for urgent matters. “Seth, we’ve got something we need to do. It’s to do with Rose.”
Seth interrupted, “I’m on my way to her location now but it’ll take me several days. She’s in Manhattan.”
“Fuck.” Brendan’s jaw tightened. “I’ll meet you as soon as I can get there.”
“What’s up?” Seth asked, worry clear in his voice.
“You wouldn’t fucking believe me if I told you. Best that I tell you when we meet.”
Seth sighed and swore under his breath before replying, “Okay, I’ll see you soon, Brendan. Take care and travel safe, my friend.”
“Always do,” Brendan said then hung up the call, his mind in turmoil with everything the small Chinese man had revealed. He would do anything, absolutely anything, to ensure his daughter’s safety. He’d take out anyone, or anything, that stood in his way.
Chapter Nine
Rose heard voices but they seemed far away and muted as she tried to open her eyes. Her head pounded and her lips felt dry and cracked as her tongue darted out to try and moisten them. It didn’t seem to help as her tongue appeared to be just as dry. Forcing her eyelids to lift she was instantly confused. A load of medical paraphernalia was the first thing she saw and she wondered where the fuck she was.
A hospital? Hell, there were no hospitals.
She could hear a conversation nearby and tried to concentrate on the words. Someone was giving some kind of report. “I can’t say for sure. I’m sorry but she has a severe concussion with a small bleed inside her skull. I can’t operate on her, Mr. Allarde. I’m not qualified for that sort of surgery. I’m not even sure if there’s anyone left that could do it safely.”
“You’re a doctor and one I’d been led to believe was a surgeon.”
She recognized the second voice and for no reason the sides of her mouth tugged upwards.
“Yes, and yes, but I was a heart surgeon. I’ve never operated on a brain before. If I do something wrong she could die.”
“For fuck sake!”
Allarde sounded pissed and she heard the distinct sound of something smashing.
“I’m sorry.” The other man’s voice sounded scared.
“Is there any way to find out if there’s someone that can do the procedure?” Allarde’s tone was clipped as he spoke and she realized she liked hearing his voice, even if he did still sound angry. Her muddled brain knew that was wrong. He was her target for goodness sake. She’d come here for one thing and one thing only: kill Cassius Allarde.
The stranger’s voice muttered, “Possibly, I’m not sure.”
“That’s not a fucking answer,” Allarde shouted and she decided she’d try and save the other man from any more grief.
“Hello.” She tried to shout and was more than a little surprised it came out as barely a whimper.
She fought to get up into a sitting position but stopped when her head pounded even more. Nausea gripped her stomach and she stayed still, not wanting to vomit again. Jeez, she’d puked more in the last day than she had in years. Raising a hand to her face she felt her head, cold and clammy, equaled not good. Shit.
“You’re awake.” Allarde’s voice broke into her consciousness. “How are you feeling?”
She gave him a small smile. “Where am I and I’ll apologize now in case I puked on your nice carpet.”
His hand waved away her words. “Don’t worry about it. Please.” He sat down next to her. “Don’t try and move. You’ve got a bad head injury.”
“Really?” Rose asked as she watched him stare hard at her, his gaze intense and strangely comforting.
“Yes.” He reached for a small bottle of water, opening it and placing a straw inside. “Here, have a few sips.”
“Thanks.” She gratefully sucked on the straw to get the beautiful liquid into her painfully dry mouth.
“You’ve been out for almost three day
s.” Allarde pulled the straw from her mouth and she almost groaned at the loss. “Just a little right now, until we see if you can keep it down.”
“What?” She frowned. “Did you say I’ve been in this bed for three days?”
“Yes. You’re in my bed.”
She looked around, saw the luxurious room which was now littered with a dozen different medical machines. “What’s all this?”
“Everything we could get our hands on. Luckily they work because we have power, so the doctor has been able to monitor you but he says you have an injury inside which needs to heal.”
“Fuck.” Rose swore, if she could use her magic she could heal herself. Obviously that wasn’t an option open to her.
“From what I can gather it’s serious, Marie.” Allarde reached over, patting her hand. “I’m sorry. This was my fault. I should’ve dealt with that tribe of Fairies weeks ago but they seemed peaceful. Well, as peaceful as Fairies can be.”
Rose frowned, his words not making sense. “What’re you talking about?”
“The person who attacked you.” His face hardened and he looked very angry as he carried on. “Their leader has denied it was one of their tribe but his words are meaningless. I saw it for myself.”
“Wait.” Rose fought to get the words out, her brain all jumbled up and her voice sounding weak. “It wasn’t a Fairy.”
“Yes.” Allarde nodded. “It was. I saw it clearly.”
“No.” Rose reached for his hand as she thought on the repercussions of his delusion. “It wasn’t. It looked like one, but I know them. I’ve trained with them and that thing only looked like a Fairy. It wasn’t.”
“Are you sure?” Allarde looked at her as if she was talking nonsense.
“I’m sure.” She tried to move again and nausea overtook her again, her hand flying to her mouth.
Allarde grabbed a bowl and held her head as she vomited the small amount of precious water she’d drank only moments before. “Fuck.” He swore as her head began to spin furiously.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Allarde,” she croaked out, wondering how many times this man would see her puke.
“Cassius, call me Cassius and you have nothing to be sorry for.” His eyes met hers and he smiled for a moment before scowling again. “I fucking wish I could get my hands on a Witch.”
Rose recoiled as he placed her head gently back onto the pillow. “Pardon?” she whispered, terrified of his answer.
“If I could find a Witch, then they could heal you.” He gave her a small smile again. “But I’m afraid I’ve tried already and I’ve come up with nothing. None are to be found and anyone that knows of any still alive are most definitely not talking.”
“I see.” She tried to focus on his body language to see if his intentions were good, or not. “I suppose folks would be scared to admit knowing one. It’s not good for your health if you do.”
“I know.” Cassius held his hands up as he shrugged. “It’s hellish what’s gone on. One of my closest friends was a Witch.”
“Was?” she asked, knowing the probable answer.
“Yes.” His eyes clouded over and she was certain it was pain she saw within them. “He was like a brother to me but I got word a few months ago that he’d been caught in Europe and well, I guess you know the rest.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, looking at him with new eyes. “So you’ve never hunted Witches?”
“What?” His look was shocked and more than a little indignant. “Of course not. What kind of man do you think I am?”
Rose didn’t reply straight away and when she did she was cautious. “I’m not sure. I’ve heard stories, but to be honest, you don’t appear to be the person that’s in those stories.”
“I’m not a monster.” Cassius shook his head slowly. “I admit I can be a little intense and I carry out punishment to those that do wrong, but, I would like to think that I’m fair. I only want to try and sort out this mess we’re all living in. I don’t believe this nonsense about a Witch bringing death and destruction to the world. Fuck, we’ve done that all by ourselves. Instead of fighting each other we should be working together.”
“That’s a tall order,” she murmured, suddenly sleepy. She struggled to focus as she fought to stay awake.
“You need to rest.” He stood and smiled down at her. “I’m going to continue the hunt for a Witch that I can then try and bribe to come and heal you. Wish me luck.”
She thought she mumbled just before sleep took her. “You don’t need it.”
Rose heard his voice faintly as she slipped deeper into darkness. “Val! Val! We made a mistake. It wasn’t a Fairy so we need to mend some bridges with their leader.”
“Good,” Rose thought as she lost the struggle to stay awake and finally sank into darkness.
*****
Valentine stood with hands on hips as Cassius returned to the living area. “What did you say?”
“She says she knows Fairies, has trained with them, whatever the hell that means.” Cassius ran a hand over his face as he paced back and forth. “Marie says that the thing that attacked her was definitely not a Fairy but was made to look like one. We need to sort this before it escalates.”
“Fucking hell.” Val scowled. “No wonder they were so angry. I’ll deal with it. You’ve got enough on your plate.”
“What about our hunt for a Witch? Any luck with that?”
Val shook his head. “No. I’ve put out the word that you need one to heal someone and that you’ll pay handsomely for their services. But let’s be honest, boss, who’s gonna take the chance of admitting they’re a Witch? I don’t think we’ll find one unless it’s someone who knows about one and just wants to make some fast bucks.”
“There must be one somewhere.” Cassius’ face rippled with anger as he strode over to the window, staring out over Central Park. “Surely they’re not all gone. What a fucking world we’re living in if we’ve made extinct an entire sentient species.”
Valentine walked up behind him, patted his shoulder. “I know. You still miss him, don’t you?”
Cassius nodded grimly. “Every fucking day. We may not have been in touch every day, but hell, I knew he was out there. Now I know he’s not, it eats away at me. Do you have any new information on the hunters that took him?”
Cassius turned to stare at Valentine. “Well?”
Val shrugged. “Maybe, nothing concrete yet but as soon as I do I’ll let you know.”
“Whatever it takes, Valentine. I want them here, before me, as soon as you find them.”
“Hey,” Valentine shook his head. “I’ll find them. You know I will, and I’ll get them here as soon as I can but I’m no magician. I can’t just make them appear here.”
“You have access to the jet, use it.” Cassius’ voice hard as he turned away to look out the window once more. “I need to look those fucks in the eye when I end them.”
“You will, boss.” Valentine turned away. “I’m going to contact some more people to see if I can get my hands on a Witch.”
“Make sure they know I won’t harm them.” Cassius turned to look at his friend. “I want it known throughout the whole fucking world that I don’t agree with these hunts and the nonsense about Witches. In fact, what if we put it out there that this is a safe haven for them? Do you think that would help?”
Valentine stared at Cassius and stayed silent for a moment before shrugging. “Shit, boss, if you do that you’re gonna have even more enemies than you do now.”
“I don’t care,” Cassius said firmly, his jaw tense and eyes fiery with resolve. “Someone needs to make a stand and I’m going to be the first. Get it out there, Valentine.”
“Sure.” Val shook his head. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing.”
“What I’m doing is letting everyone know that here in my domain everyone, whatever species, is safe. If we need to fight to get our point across then so be it.”
“I’ll double the guards. Just in case there’s any fallout
from this.” Valentine turned to leave, stopping at the door before turning back. “I’m with you, boss, you know that, but there’s many who don’t agree with you on this. You need to be careful.”
“I’m always careful.” Cassius grinned as Valentine snorted.
“Yeah, sure you are.”
Cassius sighed heavily as he thought on the young woman lying in his bed. If he didn’t find someone with magical powers then she may very well die. That wasn’t something he could let happen. She should’ve been safe and yet she’d been attacked less than a hundred yards from his front door. Something just didn’t add up and he needed to get to the bottom of that. As soon as possible.
A cough brought his attention back to the man standing in a corner looking very uneasy. “Sorry, Doctor. So, can you see if you can find someone a little more experienced in this type of injury?”
“Yes. Of course. I’ve got a couple of contacts I can try and speak to.”
“Good.” Cassius sat down in his favorite armchair, stretching his legs out in front of him and trying to relax his tense muscles. “Let me know how you get on. But, Doctor, time is of the essence.”
“I know.” The man nodded before escaping quickly.
Once he was alone he tugged out his phone, glad that he and his close associates could keep in touch via the satellites sent up into space decades before. He hadn’t been able to reach Valeria in the past two days and hoped she was now within an area that had coverage. The call connected and he sighed in relief as he heard it ringing several times before she answered. “Good evening, Cassius.”
Once Upon A Midnight Page 169
