People like me, the enforcers of the Will of the Merlins, were fair game. It came with the territory, and none of us entered the role without knowing what it entailed.
There was no forcing someone to do what we did. Some did it because they enjoyed being able to use their Magic to cause others suffering. They didn't last that long. Too dangerous.
Others did it because of the money, like me. And because they wanted to keep the dangerous people off the streets. Also like me. That and killing baddies, as I've already said, didn't really bother me that much. At all. I certainly wasn't going to have nightmares about scrubbing a piece of shit from my shoe, and I applied that outlook to the Marks.
'The Merlins have been. They were most put out that I'd been tampered with. Add Steven's Compelling to the mix, and they're getting especially worried in my opinion. Not that they’d admit to that, of course.’
The thought of the Merlins ever admitting that they were worried made me laugh. Ever since Arthur's day, they'd been working with Mundanes to protect the world against the things that could be found in Elsewhere. There were rumours that the Inquisition was nothing more than a purge of their ranks. Something I could easily believe. The Merlins were as cold-hearted as any Vampyre I'd ever come across.
'Well, you aren't going to get better drinking cups of tea and dunking your favourite biscuits. Let me get some Wards set up to get the place safe again, and then we'll get you to Mrs. Beaston.' I didn't wait for him to agree. Sometimes, he was a curmudgeonous bugger and could get really pissy about having to rely on others to keep his house and himself protected. He was Iconed to the hilt, but if attacked quickly enough and in the right way, it wouldn't matter what he had. He was just a Mundane with some Magical jewellery.
It took me roughly half an hour to get the old Wards working properly again. Seemed Pete and his crew had disarmed them, even going so far as to trying to trap some so if they were re-activated, they'd turn on the person who had done so. That was incredibly cunning and sneaky, surprisingly so. I decided I wasn't going to underestimate Pete again.
Once that was settled, it was back into the Landy and on the road again. We used the drive to apprise John of our findings and give an update on the progress we'd made. He hadn't heard that Caroline was dead, the Merlins attending his house not being part of the same team who came to question us.
'So, all we have is that we know the Hound is definitely going to be Unbound by persons known or unknown. Those same people Compelled our Librarian to attack anyone, you, who asked him for reference material on the Hound. They then had Caroline killed because she somehow knew that Steve had been Compelled and was indiscreet with that knowledge. Finally, they decided to torture me, and outright kill you, because you were making too much trouble,' he said when Dawn and I finally fell silent.
'Yes.' I didn't have much more to add.
'Well, the next thing we need to do, well, you need to do, is find Stinky Pete and find out who hired him and his lads to hurt me and kill you,' he said, wincing as the Landy jolted over a pothole.
'Sorry!' said Dawn, overcompensating and hitting another pothole that caused him to hiss in pain. 'Shit. Sorry again.' I placed a hand on her knee and squeezed. She was trying too hard. Endearing at times. This wasn't one of them.
'Let's just get John to Mrs. Beaston, and then we'll hit the pavements.'
Like any city, Exeter has a lot of pubs. According to some books and websites that I'd looked it, Exeter used to have far more pubs in the past. It even had breweries, like the Heavitree Brewery. All gone now, though. The breweries were starting to re-appear as part of the massive revival in ale, and the awful shite people called craft beer. How anyone could drink anything so strongly perfumed as the beer that was produced by a lot of the new breweries was beyond me. I much preferred ales like Yellowhammer and Avocet.
Just the thought of a nice, cold pint had my mouth watering, but I never drank on duty. Clouded the senses and had a strange effect on Magic. No one had ever been able to say why, just that Magic and booze don't mix. The pub that we were going to was called the Puffing Billy. It was a strange, hexagonal building tacked on to the end of Longbrooke Street and was pretty much dead opposite the Book Cover.
The patrons couldn't have been more different. No matter what time of day, the Billy had always had men and women standing outside, fag and a pint in hand. All weathers.
It was the sort of pub that caused people's eyes to shift away from. Not because of any Glamour in place, but because they were worried they'd get a kicking from the patrons.
It was most certainly not the sort of pub where you wanted to make eye contact for too long. It was the sort of pub Stinky Pete and his crew frequented. As such, it was also where we were headed as the starting point of our search for Pete.
His brother, Nigel, part of Pete’s crew was known to frequent it, and there was a small chance that Pete might head there. If he wasn’t there, then Nigel would be a close second-best.
'Don't think that the daft sod will be there, do you?' asked Dawn as we walked down Paris Street on the Waterstone's side. Taking that route gave us a clear line of sight to the Billy.
If we'd been on the other side, we'd have literally turned around the end of John Lewis and found ourselves slap-bang on the pub's doorstep. I didn't want to walk in to any trouble that way. 'If he is, though, he won't be stupid enough to try and fight us with all these Mundanes around. Would he?'
'Christ, I hope not. Stop here and stay where you are.' She had her back to the pub and acted as a convenient Shield for me to look over and see if Pete wasn't outside having a smoke. He wasn't, which meant that we'd have to enter the place. Shit.
'See him?' she asked.
'Nope. Stay here. I'm going to go in and see if I can spot him. If he isn't there, I'll ask one of the locals if they've seen him recently.'
I wasn't expecting them to tell me anything using words, but their body language, as they told me to fuck off would tell me everything I needed to know. Fingers crossed, I scooted across the road, took the steps up to the pub two at a time, nodded to the unsavoury characters stood outside, took a deep breath, and entered the pub.
'Bitch!' If he hadn't shouted, the bottle that Nigel threw at my head would have finished my day there and then. As it was, I was able to get a rising cover up, the bottle bouncing harmlessly off my arm. By harmlessly, I meant it still hurt.
By that time, he was already charging towards me, knocking the more inebriated of the locals flying as they were too slow to get out of his way.
He'd Were’d just enough that his claws were out, but not enough for the Mundanes in the pub to notice. None of them would have cared anyway. They were either too pissed, or of a criminal bent that meant no one would take them seriously, anyway.
He led with a double lead jab, fingers extended, followed by a rear hand swipe, then a lead swipe. If the bottle had hit, I’d have been unable to defend myself and those swipes would have been devastating.
As it was, I slipped, bobbed, weaved, parried, and ducked them all before returning the favour with a quick jab, cross, rear shin kick to the thigh. I might not have mentioned this before, but I'm quite petite, meaning that there's very little padding on my shins, making them ideal for the sort of thing I was using them for now. Inflicting pain.
'Shit!' he spat as his leg buckled, refusing to take his weight.
'Now, now Nigel, that's no way to speak to a lady. I need to take you in. There's going to be a Mark on you for what you did to me and John. How about you come quietly?' He scooped a pint at my face.
Blocking the glass, I was unable to block the god-awful lager in it. Blinded, I felt something crash into my head, and then fire blossomed in my stomach, sending me to the floor.
I was starting to get very fed up indeed with ending up on all fours in Wererat’s presence. That and it did nothing for a case officer to brought low by a Marked man such as Nigel now was. His feet thundered past me, and I heard the pub's door bang.
'He’s gone that way!' Dawn shouted. He was running up Bailey street, and with a sinking heart, I knew that he was going to cut down the alley between Boots and Waterstone's.
'Get after him!' I gasped, flapping my hand in the hope that she'd understand what I needed her to do. I tried to straighten up, but my guts were still spasming, and pain shot through my whole body. A blow to an unprepared stomach was not something you wanted to have happen to you.
As quickly as I could, I chased after Dawn as she chased after Nigel. They were out of my sight in seconds, and as I rounded the corner, I saw that Dawn had come to a halt and was waiting for me.
'Shit, he's fast. One guess as to where he went,' she said, pressing her mouth shut tightly afterward.
'The tunnels?'
'Yep.'
I decided there and then that getting my breath back and checking that he hadn't caused any permanent damage was more important than chasing him. We knew where he went, and where he was going. I just wish he hadn't.
'Let's get a coffee, and some cake. We'll go in after. If he's waiting in ambush, he'll get bored and scurry off. Might even let his guard down.'
The coffee and cake did wonders for my body, and my soul. Still, the thought of going into that section of the underground tunnels really wasn't appealing. There was a reason the section of tunnels he'd run into were sealed off, and it had to do with meddling Victorians and their obsession with the occult.
These Victorians had taken their meddling too far, stumbling across a book that allowed Mundanes to access Elsewhere and call forth any number of interesting people and creatures. Which then proceeded to eat them.
It took a lot of time and effort to close that Portal and the psychic and Magical fallout of the — quite frankly — epic battle that took place beneath the city was something I wanted to avoid at all costs.
'Okay, just so we're clear. We enter the tunnels, track him down, then bring him up to question him. It's just too dangerous down below.' I held Dawn's gaze, making sure that she understood.
'Well and truly clear, boss.' She gave a tight nod, her usually darker-than-normal skin slightly pale. I nodded back, then waved a hand opening the door to the shop that sat above the sealed tunnels. Mundanes would just walk past this place, not even sparing it a second glance. Those of the Magical community could access it if they wanted to, but the risks and the residue of past events would mean that no one in their right mind would want to. I sent John a text to update him, then led the way into the shop.
It was nothing special. An old till sat on the counter at the back, and the shelves were stocked with items that had been out of date before the ‘50s. There was a sign permanently in the door window saying, 'Popped out, back in five minutes.' There was no staff. No need for a shop that didn't trade, after all.
In the centre of the shop was a spiraling mosaic that seemed to give the perception of never ending. I waved again, activating the Ward and stepping back as it fell away, downwards, the spiral unravelling into a set of steep and winding stairs.
'Whilst very cool, I really don't fancy going down those stairs!' laughed Dawn, nervously.
'That's why I want you to chuck a couple of Fireballs down there, followed by a Fae Light.' I handed her the Icons she’d need. I had more than enough of my own. The Fireballs would hopefully drive Nigel away from the tunnel entrance, whilst the Fae Light would prevent him from being able to hide in ambush. That was the theory at least.
Wiping my suddenly damp palms on my trousers, I gave her the signal. Quick as a flash, two Fireballs whooshed down into the darkness below before exploding massive clouds of fire. The Fae Light followed, blindingly bright even up here. I grinned. She's learning fast.
'On me.' I stepped onto the first step and headed down them as quickly as possible, using the outside wall to keep my balance as the stairs twisted upon themselves time and time again, before I finally stepped into the chamber marking the start of this tunnel section.
The Fireballs had pleasantly heated up the chamber, but I could still feel a chill and dank breeze coming from the tunnel that faced us.
'Think he knows we're here?' whispered Dawn as she stepped into the chamber.
'If he doesn't, he's either deaf. Or dead.' I shuddered, not liking that thought. Not because I wanted him to live, but because I didn't want to meet the thing that had killed him. Not down in centuries-old tunnels with limited 'run the hell away' options.
Steeling myself, I motioned to Dawn to send the Fae Light down the tunnel using a mixture of sign language, bad lip reading, and a muttered 'send the Fae Light down the tunnel.'. Once that was sorted, we headed into the formerly stygian darkness, the Fae Light leading us so anything trying to attack us would be backlit.
For five heart-stopping minutes, we went deeper and deeper into the tunnel system. Signs of the old battle were plain to see. Blood stains, smoke, and fire stains, as well as claw marks gouged deeply into the walls, floor, and ceiling. I didn't envy the Merlins who had fought down here.
'We're getting close to the main set of chambers,' I whispered, placing a hand up to stop Dawn from bumping into me. 'This is where he's most likely hiding.' Rats, when cornered, run to a hole. This rat had been well and truly cornered and must have thought that hiding down here was a good idea. Normally, it would have been. No one in their right mind would have entered these tunnels even if someone paid them. But I wasn't really in my right mind, and I was being paid a lot to do this.
'From what I remember, the tunnel dog legs in about ten yards, and then opens up into the chambers. We'll send in some Fireballs, then push the Fae into the centre. Ramp it up as high as possible for a couple of seconds. We'll then enter and, hopefully, be able to take him down. I want to have a word with him.'
Dawn gave me the thumbs up, so I continued until reaching the dog-leg. The tunnel beyond was little more than five yards long before it opened into the chamber.
As quickly as possible, we filled the area with flame, then we ducked back as Dawn sent the Fae Light whizzing into the chamber. Even tucked around the corner as we were, the light hurt.
'Bloody hell, love, you're getting good at this!' Dawn grinned at the praise. 'Move.'
Sprinting around the corner, we charged into the chamber, Shields up and Spells ready. Looking to the left, I saw nothing in the cold white of the Fae Light but whirled as I heard a curse from my other side. The next thing I knew, Nigel was sailing through the air with an ear-splitting screech as Dawn executed a perfect tome nagi, worthy of an Olympic champion.
He landed with a bone-crunching jolt. Not wanting to give him a chance to recover, I stepped forward and clasped his leg with both hands, sending a powerful jolt of Lightning into him. Enough to char skin and shut him down but, hopefully, not enough to kill him.
’Cuffs, quickly.' We carried all manner of things pertinent to our job, and cuffs and manacles were some of the most useful things man had ever invented in my opinion. Working quickly, we tied his ankles and wrists, linking them behind his back after flipping him onto his stomach.
'Buh…buh …bitch!' he managed to croak out. It seemed to be his go-to insult and was boring. I stepped forward, standing on the inside of his ankle, about an inch above on the shin. There's a pressure point there, and it really doesn't like being stood on. Nigel screamed, trying to move, but so overwhelmed by the pain that he could only gasp.
'Stop being rude to me, answer my questions, and I won't have to hurt you. Understand?'
'Fu….' was all he managed to get out before Dawn stepped forward and booted him in the kidneys. That's also an amazingly painful place to be hit. The pain is shocking and overloads the system for a brief while.
Looking down at him, I silently counted as his mouth opened and closed whilst he tried to draw breath. I reached ten be
fore his body would do what he needed it to.
'Seriously? Macho bravado doesn't work on me. You're not my type, never have been, never will be. Just let us know what we want to know, and I'll turn you over to the Merlins. Couple of years or so in prison, and then you're out. Keep this up, and you're going to die resisting arrest.'
'I tell you what you want to know, I'm dead!' he gasped, spitting onto the dusty chamber floor.
'Fine, don't tell us about the Hound, tell us about Pete. Where is he?'
'Fucked if I know. He bloody legged it after he ballsed up the ambush. He knew the boss would be seriously pissed off.'
'Come on,' I knelt by his head, pushing his greasy hair out of his face, 'You must have some idea as to where he went?' I knotted my hands in his hair, grimacing at the feel, and twisted hard.
'Think!'
'Aagh! Jesus, fucking cow! Fine! He might be in UnderTown!'
I hid a smile. We had him talking. Now, all we had to do was to keep him talking. 'So, who's the boss?'
'Dunno, he's someone with real power, though, on the inside. Me and the lads were never privy to any of the conversations that Pete had with them. He just told us what we had to do and paid us. It was Pete what spoke to him.'
I sighed. I hadn't really held out much hope that Nigel would have spoken to the boss, but there was still the chance he would have heard or seen something that would give us some sort of clue.
Before I could press him further, there was a sudden buzzing, and a flash of light zipped past me, punching into his eye, a trail of glittering dust falling to the ground behind it
'Shit! Fae! Get ready to catch it when it comes out!' [homeless] was fitting on the floor as best as he could, tied up the way he was. Blood gushed out of his eye socket, splashing onto the wall opposite, a good ten feet away, and then he stopped trashing.
Dawn and I held our breaths. I saw that she'd got a Net spell ready, something that was invaluable in our line of work. Looking at the weave, I gave a nod of approval. There was no way a gnat, let alone a Fae as large as my thumb, was going to get through it.
Hell Hound Page 10
