by P M Cole
Batwing avenue… first floor. I met my mother. I want to know her. Know all of—
“Corine?” A male voice came from the top of the stairs as others moved past me.
I reluctantly looked up. Daniel looked down at me, Grace just behind him. I completely forgot everything I was meant to say.
“Well, this is awkward,” said Grace.
I steadied myself and tried to look surprised. Then climbed the remaining stairs, moving past them.
“Corine? I… we mean you no harm. Even if we did, we’re not stupid enough to try anything here.”
Grace looked at him. “Leave her. We’re not here for this!”
I stopped just short of the exit to the floor and turned. “I remember.” It was completely not what Lucas had told me to say, but it felt right.
Daniel looked down briefly while Grace stiffened her back. “We all do,” he said. “That was… unfortunate. But remember, it was us who were attacked.”
He had a point.
He walked up a step moving closer. “There is a place on the ground floor that offers hot drinks. We were just on our way to get some. I know you might hate us, but—”
“OK…”
A smile crept across his face, while confusion appeared on Grace's, quickly followed by her shaking her head.
“Good!” he said.
Trying to ignore the hairs standing up across my body, we continued down the stairs. I wondered which of the shafts in the monitoring room would show myself emerging from the stairwell with them.
“How is the Cyclops…” said Grace.
I looked up at her angrily, but on seeing her concern, looked away. “Alive.”
Daniel frowned at the equally tall women. “Yes, it was quite a battle, but no need to dwell on the past. I understand the clock shop is now yours after your employer's passing?”
“Yes, but…” Talking normally felt wrong. I had to push the words from my mouth. “I don’t spend much time there.”
We arrived at our destination. A fenced-off area contained tables and chairs. We sat and despite the commotion around us a waitress singled us out, coming straight to our table. It wasn’t until she was standing, expecting our order, that I noticed her pointed ear, peeking through her wavy black hair.
“Two tankards of Dragon Tea, if you please,” said Daniel.
The young girl turned to me. “I’ll have the same.” I had no idea what it was.
“It has a bit of a kick,” said Grace.
“It’s fine.”
The waitress raised her eyebrows then went to leave when I realised I had not eaten anything. “Umm… what food do you have?” I asked after her.
I’m having lunch with the foster children of the god of the underworld. I pushed the thought away, it was not helping.
“Yes! Good idea. I’m a bit peckish myself,” said Daniel.
Grace sighed then leaned in closer to the man next to her. “We have things to do… and she’s the enemy!”
Daniel kept his eyes on me. “Nonsense. She is one of us.”
The waitress tapped her finger impatiently. I asked to be brought their usual breakfast, and Daniel asked for the same. Grace sat back and crossed her arms.
“So, you’re a doctor?” I said, trying desperately to stop my memories from overwhelming me.
“I am, well, in the process of becoming one. I’m currently in residence at the newly built hospital on the Albert embankment. Have you had cause to pass by there?”
I nodded. The waitress reappeared with a tray and three tankards which were bubbling. She put them on the table. Grace smirked.
I picked mine up and took a few gulps. A fizzing exploded in my brain, but luckily quickly passed. I put the steaming tankard down. Grace’s smirk had been replaced with a frown and Daniel was silently laughing. He looked to his right. “One of us."
I stayed silent despite my frustration at his insinuation. “And what do you do?” I said to Grace.
“She’s a nurse at the same establishment,” said Daniel.
She shot him a look of anger. “I can speak for myself.” Then turned to me. “But yes, he’s right. I am a nurse.”
“I see.”
“What do you see?” She leaned forward. “I think you only saw, what Chronus wanted you to see. You believed his lies.”
I looked at her, genuinely confused about what she was talking about.
Daniel eyes widened. “No, need to bring up—”
She continued. “You and the casuals you call your friends, want all of us dead. But that did not work out to well for you did it?”
The metal table between us started to shudder. Both of them sat back in alarm. A few of those seated nearby looked in our direction. I took a deep breath and the table stilled. “I met my mother yesterday morning.” The words burst from my mouth as a means to distract me from my anger, but I instantly regretted them.
Daniel looked at Grace with surprise, he then looked back to me. “You met Ophelia?”
“Umm yes. She left a note for me at the shop. As you can imagine I was quite surprised. For all these years I thought she was dead. That Finlay had killed her, as he did my father.”
For the first time Daniel seemed to be lost for words, and confrontation seemed to have left the young woman next to him.
I pressed home my advantage, looking at both of them directly. “You are correct. I did see all of you as my enemy. And Byron did lie to me.”
“He killed that casual you appeared to care for?” said Daniel.
"I did. But I was wrong about… that casual. I was wrong about so many things. However, I will never trust Byron or think of him as I did before, but when I got the note from my mother, I thought maybe I could have another chance with the rest of you.” I looked at Grace. “Regardless of what you thought of Mr Gladwell, his sacrifice was so I could have a second chance. That things do not have to end as they did before.”
“Byron… has always been troubled,” said Daniel, his eyes looking away.
“That’s one way of putting it,” said Grace.
“Yes, but he always wants what is best for all of us,” said Daniel to both of us. “He just goes about it in an extreme fashion.” He looked more directly at me. “He wanted you to be part of our family, Corine, like you always should have been.”
I produced my best fake smile.
*****
I watched them leave by the main entrance. Daniel taking his coat and tall hat from a cloakroom area and touching the rim of it in my direction before taking the exit with Grace.
I nodded, but once they were out of my sight I turned and ran back up to the first floor. Charlotte and Lucas were already waiting for me. He went to talk but I rushed past, instead moving to the stall that Daniel and Grace were attending an hour earlier. Lucas and Charlotte caught up.
A large sign covered the top of the stall.
‘Krycek’s Mysterious Potions and Arcane Scrolls’.
An old man, with a round flat hat covered in tiny silver stars, looked back at me over a wooden table that was covered in tied parchments and wooden crates full of tiny bottles.
He squinted through a monocle. “You want something?”
“About an hour ago. There were two young people here, a man and a woman. Umm they were tall—” I indicated how much so with my hand. The man looked at me with his mouth open. “—What did they buy from you?”
He frowned then went to turn away. “Don’t remember.”
“Ahem…” said Charlotte in his direction.
He turned back, his eyes growing wide.
“Answer the girl, Cedric.”
“I… don’t like to tell on my customers, you know that, Miss Charlotte.”
She leaned over the front of the stall. “Whisper it to me.”
He did and she leaned back, then turned, and proceeded to walk away. Lucas and I followed.
“What did he say?” I said.
“Not here. Let’s go upstairs.”
We were
soon taking the ride into the sky and emerging into the large room of Charlotte’s home.
“Well?” I said.
“They asked for a potion made from Clarion root.”
“A truth potion?” asked Lucas.
Charlotte nodded.
I sat on the sofa. “Why would they want that?”
“It wasn’t even a strong one, either. Wouldn’t work on any being with magic in them. It’s more for the casuals.”
Lucas sat opposite. “So, they need to get the truth from a casual. I wonder who.”
I noticed Charlotte looking at me. “So?”
“So?”
Lucas joined in with the staring. “Oh yes. So?”
I realised they were referring to my lunch date. “It was strange.”
“I’m sure it was, but what did they say? Did they give you any clues as to why they were here?” said Lucas.
“Not really. I got the impression they were here for something important. Perhaps for Hades, but they never told me what it was. Daniel was… quite friendly.” The word friendly, in this context, sounded alien to me.
“Yes, we saw from the monitoring station.”
“Did you mention your mother?” said Lucas.
“Yes…” I felt guilty for having done so. I shuddered at the thought of Hades finding out she had met me. Then mocked myself again for having such a reaction. He probably already knew.
I leaned back in the sofa and sighed. “Daniel asked if he could meet me again. He said he will return tomorrow, and wait for me at the entrance at 10 a.m.” The thought of suppressing my emotions a second time was having the opposite effect. My heart began to beat in my chest, and a swirl of emotions, thoughts. and memories, most of them conflicting were making the room around me feel is if it lacked air. I quickly got up and pulled the door to the balcony open and stepped out. Light snow was falling.
A chirp came from above as Auto circled overhead.
I looked back down to the fog, my mind lost in thought. To say I felt confused was a gross understatement. If I had met them, and not known of who they truly were, and there had not been any past between us, I would have honestly liked them. Daniel appeared to want to help people. Although each time he mentioned how he felt being a doctor was a calling, I couldn’t help but see in my mind what he did to Lucas. And the same for Grace. She had already traveled far and wide for the service she was part of, telling me how she usually managed to find herself in the middle of a skirmish which for obvious reasons she enjoyed. But most of all, they were like me, each given a gift at birth and set on a path, whether they liked it or not. I liked them, and that was disturbing.
Auto descended and landed on the balcony rail. I sighed, patting him on his head, then a thought struck me. Before I could explore it more, a noise came from the room behind and I turned to see Lucas, dressed in his winter coat, and Dax standing nearby in similar attire. I walked back inside.
“Are you OK?” said Lucas.
“I think so. Just a lot Io think about.”
“Of course. Dax and I are going to Wraith manor, but we shall be back tomorrow, weather permitting. Can I hope that you won’t do anything too… extreme again, before I return?”
I smiled. “I can’t make any promises, but I will try.”
“Good.”
As soon as the two men left, I turned to Charlotte. “I’m going to Pimlico to visit with a friend.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
I made my way to Bernard’s home, crossing the Thames twice, and carrying Auto inside my coat. The river was now mostly frozen over, with river craft bound by ice. As previously agreed, instead of knocking at the front, I made my way down the side alley to the back garden, keeping watch that Mrs Hayward was not outside, and then down the steps to the basement. Pulling my scarf from my face, I knocked on the door there.
After a short amount of time, Hessie appeared on the other side of the glass. She frowned then opened the door. “He’s with Mrs Hayward in the living room.”
“Tell him I just need a quick word.”
She sighed, then turned, closing the door in my face, and disappeared out of the kitchen. I shivered and pulled my coat tighter. Small flakes of ice were beginning to float down around me. Auto chirped.
“Shh. Quiet.”
As I waited, I thought about the last time I was here. It had only been a few weeks but felt like years.
The kitchen door opened, and in walked Bernard. He opened the door in front of me, but instead of ushering me in from the cold, he stepped outside.
“I can’t talk long. Is everything OK? How did it go with your mother?”
I quickly told him of the last few days' events, including meeting Daniel and Grace.
“Things have moved along at quite a pace since I last saw you. You feel safe at the Factory?”
“I think so yes. Charlotte has helped me with… what I can do. But I was hoping you could help me with something else. We need to know more of what Hades is up to. Maybe if we could look into Lord Cannington’s business dealings, it might give us a clue to his plans?”
He nodded. “In fact, I have been doing just such a thing. Umm…” He looked behind himself, to make sure we were still alone. “His foundation has just purchased a chemical works in Battersea, I was thinking of traveling to the place tomorrow myself.”
“I can meet you there. What’s the address?”
“Wait here.”
He disappeared back inside which was looking enticing due to the tumbling temperature. He soon returned with a small piece of folded paper.
“I’ll meet you at the address on this paper at 11 a.m.” He looked up into the grey sky and the clumps of snow falling. “This is sure to lie. Tomorrow then.”
I nodded and went to move away, but he went to speak again.
“I know this must be a very trying time for you, if you want to talk about… things. Just know I’m here for that as well as knowledge of the ancient past!”
I smiled. “Thank you.” I appreciated his concern, but I had no time to slow down to think about things. I needed to act.
I made my way back to the road out front of the terraced house. My footprints were now leaving a trail, breaking up the white powdery flakes. I looked at my pocket watch. 2 p.m. Then I opened the paper. Unfortunately, the location was south of the river, but not too far. I calculated perhaps forty minutes if I managed to keep up a good pace.
I made a note of which was a south-easterly direction and set off. It wasn’t long before I was crossing Chelsea bridge. Luckily, I had some pennies to pay the toll, and I quickly found myself in Battersea, walking along a wide thoroughfare south. Due to the failing light the lamplighters were already out in force attending to the streetlights.
I stood next to one of them and checked the address on the paper. Putting my head down, I marched onwards through the snow that was now up to my ankles and headed into the side streets. Banks of three-storey, terraced houses, most with lit windows, covered both sides of the streets, but another building a few miles off grabbed my attention.
Five storeys were visible until the rest was taken by the low cloud. Rows of narrow windows filled each of the sides that I could see, and a large tower stood on one corner. I knew that must be my destination.
I hurried along as the occasional cab passed by and moved into an even narrower road. The homes here were only two-storey, and most were boarded up. Then I spotted it, a wall with spikes on and a double gate which was closed. I stayed on the other side of the street and walked until I was opposite a large sign which was near the gate. ‘Hardy, Foster, and Son’s Acetic Acid Works.’ It was also mentioned, roughly painted that they were closed, awaiting new owners.
The monolithic building was beyond the gate and dominated everything around it. I strained my eyes trying to see through the snow that was now falling heavily, to see any sign of life within the building, but there were no lights or movement.
I shook my head, knocking the snow from my hair, and l
ooked along the road and the houses close to me. Despite the complete silence, I couldn’t help but feel I was being watched. I pulled Auto from my coat and held him in my frozen fingers.
‘W…h…i…t…e.’
“Yes, it’s snow. I need you to take the sky and try and warn me if you see any danger. Can you do that?”
He chirped he could, and then batted his wings and took to the air. I scurried across the road to the gates, waving at the chain before I arrived which promptly fell quietly into a mound of snow, and pushed one of the gates open a small amount before I slipped inside.
That’s when I noticed the rows of carts with tarpaulins covering their cargo. Auto was already perched on top of one of them. Making sure I was still alone, I ran across the snow-covered ground and moved between the wooden wheels, then flipped up one of the canvases. Metal and glass cylinders sat next to boxes marked with skull and crossbones. I turned around and looked at the contents of another cart. It contained the same kind of items.
Voices drifted on the chill wind and I instinctively crouched. Then a loud shunting came from the same direction, around the corner of the large building. The train whistle confirmed that the structure backed onto the tracks although there was no station there that that I was aware of. One of the voices got louder and a broad man appeared, walking towards me. I crouched lower, almost under one of the carts. I hoped the constant snow would also help mask my position. I watched, only being able to see his legs move to within ten feet, then stop and turn back to the gate. He then walked off towards it. I realised I hadn’t put the chain back.
I moved as quietly as I could along the row of carts until I was at the front wall of the building and then skirted along its right edge and moved into a tight alley with barely enough room to fit. Auto flew into the confined space as well and landed on the fence to my right. At the end I could see train tracks and carts. Men were unloading items into them. I froze, seeing them walk past, hoping they wouldn’t look into the gloom. More noises came from behind me. I whipped around, some of the carts were starting to move and a voice grew louder.
