Shrill Dusk (City of Magic Book 1)

by Helen Harper

  Then he pulled his back his fist and smashed it into the side of my head. I felt a jarring shriek of pain shudder through me before everything went black.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  The nausea swirling up in my stomach made me want to keep my eyes closed for several more hours. When conscious, rational thought finally penetrated my brain, however, I forced my eyes open and struggled against my physical woes in order to sit up.

  Lizzy, who was sitting on a chair on the other side of the room with her head in her hands, sprang up as soon as she hear my involuntary groan. ‘Charley, I’m so sorry! Shit, I’m so sorry. Mate, this is all my fault and I’m…’

  ‘So sorry?’ I croaked.

  She nodded. ‘I really am. I could have gotten away from him. When Max’s freaks grabbed me, I knew I could transform again. But I didn’t because I was scared of what else might happen if I did. And,’ she hung her head, ‘I didn’t want everyone else to see me like that. I’m…’

  ‘So sorry. I get you.’ I gave her a tired smile. ‘It’s fine.’

  ‘It’s bloody not! We’re prisoners! You’re half dead and all they’ve given me to eat is some wrinkled apples.’ She clapped her hand to her mouth. ‘How are you feeling? You’ve got a hell of a bump on the side of your head.’

  I gingerly pressed it with the tip of my fingers. Damn. That hurt. ‘I’ll be okay. Max was showing off and proving a point.’

  ‘What point is that?’

  ‘That he’s stronger than I am.’ I smiled slightly. ‘Don’t worry. He’s not.’ I stood up, wobbled alarmingly and sat back down again. Okay, maybe he was stronger than me. At the moment anyway. I glanced at my wrist. He’d taken my watch, probably for no other reason than to emphasise his absolute control. Bastard. ‘How long was I out for?’

  ‘They dropped you off about ten minutes ago but I don’t know how long it took them to get you here. You were out for the count. Completely.’ Lizzy’s eyes scanned my face. ‘Are you sure you’re alright? You look whiter than the vampi—’

  I thrust my hand up, covering her mouth and muffling the rest of the word, then I shook my head in warning. Max would have at least one person listening in. We couldn’t afford to let him know that people like Julie existed. Not yet anyway.

  Lizzy seemed confused but when I gave her a meaningful look a flicker of understanding showed in her eyes. ‘Watch this,’ she whispered. She held up her hand and flicked her wrist. Golden fur and long, lethal-looking claws sprang out. She shook her hand and they disappeared again. ‘I’m learning,’ she told me. ‘I think I can control it.’

  ‘Good.’ I patted her shoulder and made another attempt to get to my feet. This time it worked. I felt a bit dizzy, and quite possibly had some mild concussion, but it wasn’t bad enough to upset my plans. I had this.

  On shaky legs, I walked over to the large windows and peered out. The furnishings indicated that my guess about Max using the Mayor’s old residence had been accurate but I wanted proof. I looked up and down the street. Although it was night, figures were still moving around, sawing at the many gnarled tree roots blocking the road and clearing away debris.

  I exhaled. We were definitely in the right place. Score one for logic.

  ‘The windows are sealed shut,’ Lizzy said. ‘I’ve tried them all. I could break the glass and jump out, but it’s quite a drop down and there are always people out there.’ She turned. ‘The door is always locked as well. Someone comes by once an hour to check on me.’ She raised her shoulders helplessly. ‘Other than that, there’s nothing to tell you.’ She looked at me balefully. ‘He told me he was going to use me to bring you in. You shouldn’t have come, Charley. You should have left me here. Sooner or later, I’ll … change and get out of here. I’m so…’

  ‘If you say you’re sorry one more time, I’ll lock you up myself,’ I warned.

  Lizzy smiled weakly.

  I leaned over and whispered into her ear. ‘Besides, the last thing we need is for Max to realise that you’re even more magical than I am. He doesn’t know why this has happened to Manchester, but he thinks that he understands the full extent of it. He doesn’t realise you can change or that there are others like you.’

  I gestured out of the window. I couldn’t use my watch to tell the time, but I reckoned Julie was a punctual sort of person.

  As Julie sauntered into view and Max’s worker bees froze, I grinned widely. That meant it was now three o’clock. Show time! When the keening sound of a low howl began to reverberate through the house, I relaxed even further. This might even be fun.

  Julie had dressed up for the occasion. She was wearing a long cape that billowed out around her, as if she were Dracula herself. The lady certainly knew how to make an entrance.

  A young man with a saw darted over to her but she simply smiled at him. Her lips moved as she spoke; although I couldn’t make out her exact words, the man’s expression made it clear that he had recognised her. Others moved in, eager to make her acquaintance. It might seem like years ago since Manchester had gone into shutdown instead of merely a few days, but everyone still knew who she was. Her soap opera character had been beamed out to the country on a nightly basis, after all. Max wouldn’t be able to resist.

  Monroe’s howl had clearly set Max’s minions on edge, but Julie’s presence was distracting enough that they focused on her rather than the more important fact that a werewolf was somewhere in the vicinity.

  The crowd round her parted as Max strode out, an oily smile on his handsome face. He gave her a bow and, from where I was standing, it looked like Julie simpered back. He gestured behind him, obviously beckoning her indoors. I rubbed my palms. I loved it when a plan came together.

  Monroe’s first howl had been somewhat muffled, but his second was far more powerful. This time it seemed as if the very rafters were about to blow off. There were frightened shouts from inside the building; he was definitely making his presence known. Lizzy jumped, her eyes wide.

  I smiled reassuringly as the doorknob rattled and several people entered, each one with a forbidding expression that threatened certain violence.

  The first, an older man who should have known better at his age than to hang out with someone like Max, was holding a pistol. I didn’t know much about guns but, from his confident manner, I assumed that he knew what he was doing. Julie might have distracted Max, and Monroe might be engaging plenty of Max’s henchmen, but the others up here on guard duty weren’t going to look away for a second.

  ‘Get down on the floor,’ the man instructed. ‘Face down with your arms stretched out.’ His attention was on me and he ignored Lizzy. Although he’d not been at the supermarket when I’d taken out Max and his gang, he’d obviously heard about what I’d done and was wary – as he should have been.

  I got down onto my knees as he ordered. My heart was thudding against my ribcage, adrenalin and anticipation ripping through my veins. I stretched out my hands, as if to suggest that I wasn’t any sort of threat, and continued to lower myself. At the last moment, however, I flung my right hand forward. A shot of brutal magic, designed to bring the guard down, flew from my fingers.

  He was faster than I’d given him credit for. He leapt to the side; the magic missed him and slammed into several of his colleagues. He didn’t waste any time checking on them but pressed the trigger. An explosive crack filled the room.

  I didn’t feel any pain. I waited for the soul-crunching agony to pierce through me and for my heart to give way. It took a long, dull moment before I realised that I wasn’t the one who’d been shot.

  It was only when I heard a ragged gasp from Lizzy that I glanced in her direction and saw her pull her hands away from her side. They were stained red with blood.

  ‘She’ll live,’ the man said. He actually smiled as he said it. ‘But try anything again and I’ll shoot her in the head.’

  A red mist descended over my eyes. Nobody hurt me or mine. Nobody. I straightened up, got back to my feet and faced him. ‘Say tha
t again,’ I hissed.

  His smile widened. ‘Next time,’ he promised, ‘I’ll put a bullet through her pretty skull.’ He moved the gun slightly and glanced at Lizzy. Then his mouth dropped open.

  I spun towards her. Her body shape hadn’t altered but her skin was covered in the golden down of her bunyip form. She held her hands up again, gazing at the blood that was matting the fur. Her mouth opened in a silent snarl and her head jerked up to meet his. A moment later she exploded and every physical trace of what had been Lizzy vanished.

  She was on him before I could draw breath. With a twist of her massive head, she used her tusks to rip open his stomach in almost the same place where the bullet had ripped into her. This time, there was a lot more blood.

  The idiots who were still standing turned to flee but Anna was already there. She zapped the first one with her Taser, sending him slamming to the ground. I swallowed my renewed surge of nausea and flicked my wrist again. Max’s other henchmen collapsed in a heap. Anna pulled out her baton, which she must have retrieved from Jodie, and held it towards Lizzy.

  ‘Don’t,’ I croaked.

  ‘I know she’s your friend,’ Anna said, the tremor in her voice betraying her emotions, ‘but right now she’s capable of anything.’

  Lizzy raised her head and stared at her. Anna flinched. I sucked in a breath and edged over, placing one hand on Lizzy’s golden haunches. Her fur was surprisingly smooth and silky. I swallowed and stroked. ‘It’s alright,’ I said. ‘You can come back now. You’re alright.’

  I felt her muscles shudder beneath my hand. She swung around, blinking at me, then she let out a soft whine and bent down slightly. She didn’t shift back to her human self, but I was certain that I detected a flicker of the real Lizzy deep in her eyes. She had much more control over herself compared to the last occasion when she’d shifted.

  I ran my fingers under her belly, searching for the bullet wound. She emitted a tiny growl from her throat as I grazed it. ‘It hurts, doesn’t it?’ I murmured.

  She hung her head in response.

  There was very little blood leaking from the wound now. I grimaced. I knew from Monroe that Lizzy probably possessed superior self-healing skills, but I didn’t know if those skills would be strong enough for her to move properly without further injury. Better safe than sorry.

  ‘You have to stay here,’ I said. ‘We can’t risk you doing yourself further harm. We’re all here and we’ve got this. We’ll come and fetch you when it’s over.’

  Lizzy growled again, making her opinion clear.

  I sighed. ‘I need to know that you’re safe. I can’t worry about you and deal with Max at the same time. Stay here and stay safe.’ I kissed the top of her furry head while Anna frowned. Then I headed for the door.

  Thankfully, Lizzy didn’t follow; she simply lay down next to the bloody entrails of the man who’d tried to kill her and closed her eyes. It wouldn’t have been my choice for a resting place – I couldn’t even look at his body – but we’d deal with what she’d done later. This wasn’t the time for hand-wringing or guilt.

  I checked the other bodies. As far as I could tell, they were all out for the count. I’d certainly thrown everything I could muster at them, and with far more power than I’d managed previously. I’d felt the surge as the magic had left my body. As I stepped over the prone figures, I reminded myself of Timmons’ warning not to over-use magic unless it was necessary.

  Anna followed me. ‘I’m not sure why she needs any sort of rescue effort at all,’ she said in a low voice. ‘Your … friend seemed perfectly capable of defending herself.’ She paused. ‘And then some. She killed that man.’ She swallowed.

  I bit my lip. ‘I don’t think she was fully aware of what she was doing. And he did attack her first. He shot her. The next bullet would have gone through her head. What Lizzy did was self-defence.’

  Anna raised her eyebrows but didn’t say anything. I resisted the urge to continue defending Lizzy, knowing that babbling would only make my reasoning appear weaker. ‘Anyway,’ I added, ‘we’re not here to get Lizzy, we’re here to stop Max. Otherwise I wouldn’t have bothered meeting him in the park.’

  As soon as I finished speaking, two women swung into view at the far end of the corridor. They stared at us in shock and then spun round to run. Anna and I didn’t hesitate but sprinted across the short distance towards the pair. I slammed into one, knocking her into the wall and pressing my arm against her back to stop her from escaping. Anna grabbed the other woman’s collar and threw her to the floor.

  I could sense that the woman I was holding was about to scream. We didn’t need more of Max’s troops descending upon us. I flicked my fingers and, somehow, her mouth sealed shut. I grabbed her shoulders and yanked her round to face me while her companion craned her neck sideways, her eyes widening in horror as she saw her friend struggle and panic.

  ‘Breathe through your nose!’ I whispered urgently, staring down at my hands and then at my horrified captive. What the hell had I done to her?

  Her nostrils flared. She was still freaking out, her head shaking from side to side and her body trembling. Her cheeks were growing redder by the second and her very eyeballs seemed to bulge and writhe. I gestured towards her with one swift, frantic movement and again I felt the surge as a single bolt of magic spurted forward.

  Suddenly the woman’s legs gave way and she was gasping for air, her mouth wide open as I tried to keep her upright.

  ‘What did you do?’ her companion demanded. ‘What the fuck did you do?’

  Bloody good question. I shook myself. No more. Until I knew exactly what I was capable of, I couldn’t use any magic at all. It wasn’t Timmons’ warning that was worrying me now, it was the fact that I could potentially stop someone from breathing without intending to.

  Anna’s expression was closed. She pointed at a door and raised her eyebrows. I nodded and bundled the woman inside. Anna and her prisoner followed. The moment both women were inside, they backed away to the window in a bid to get themselves as far away from me as possible.

  ‘We’ll stay here. We’ll be quiet,’ the first woman said, her voice a whisper.

  Her friend who’d almost suffocated bobbed her head vigorously. ‘We don’t want to be here anyway. We thought Lord Max would be safe to stay with. He said he’d give us protection in return for…’ She choked off what she’d been about to say.

  Anger descended on me. I stared grimly at them, not sure what to say any more. Fortunately, Anna spoke instead. ‘Make any noise or alert anyone, and the enchantress will finish what she started.’

  I jumped. No, I wouldn’t; I wasn’t raising my hands against another person, not for anything. Not until I knew what I was doing. Before I could disagree, however, Anna grabbed my elbow and propelled me out of the room. ‘What was that?’ she demanded, once the door closed behind us.

  I held my hands to my burning cheeks. ‘I don’t know,’ I muttered. ‘I didn’t want to hurt her, I wanted to keep her quiet.’

  She gave me a long, hard look. ‘That magic shit you’ve got is terrifying.’ She gave a faint smile. ‘But it might be what we need.’

  My stomach dropped, more out of fear that she might be right than anything else. It felt like I was holding the best hand of my life but playing my cards could be the end of me.

  I swallowed the lump in my throat. Stop fretting, Charley, I told myself in no uncertain terms. I could debrief and de-angst later. ‘We have to get moving,’ I said. ‘I’m glad you made it here without any problems.’

  ‘You were right,’ she said. ‘There were only a few people here on guard. It was a piece of cake to slip through the net and gain access. I’d have found you sooner, but we got involved with a few stragglers and they put up a bit of a fight. It wasn’t easy keeping the noise to a minimum while we put them down. Monroe is down the hall finishing up. I suspect Lord Max is downstairs.’ She glanced at the closed door. ‘We should lock them in.’

  I shook my head. I
’d seen the expression in the women’s eyes; they’d be too scared to move for several minutes. That was more than enough time for us to make our move. ‘There’s no key,’ I said. ‘And we have to get going. Come on.’

  I let Anna lead the way past several other large rooms until we reached a plain, unvarnished door. She gave three sharp knocks and entered.

  When I saw what was inside, I gaped. Anna had been right; both she and Monroe had certainly been busy. There was a full baker’s dozen trussed up in various positions around the room.

  Monroe was bending over one figure, tying an intricate knot round them to hold them in place. He glanced up, his eyes catching mine. For the briefest second, his expression lightened, satisfaction in his gaze, then he nodded and the moment was over. ‘Good,’ he said. ‘You made it. You took your time.’

  I rolled my eyes. ‘You try taking a fist to your head that knocks you unconscious and getting up again in a hurry.’

  Monroe’s jaw clenched. ‘He did that to you?’

  It shouldn’t have warmed me that he felt fury on my behalf, but it did. ‘He was making a point. And I’m fine now. Julie’s already inside. We’d better get down there before she decides to drink him dry.’

  Monroe snorted. ‘That could only be a good thing.’

  ‘We’re not going to kill him. We’re the good guys.’

  ‘If you say so,’ Anna murmured quietly.

  I shot her a narrow-eyed look. ‘I do say so. Let’s stick to the plan. Get downstairs, get Max, and put a stop to all this once and for all.’

  ‘And we’ll all live happily ever after?’ Monroe enquired.

  ‘Someone’s got to,’ I said. ‘Come on.’

  The door opened and something was thrown in, a heavy object that hit the floor and rolled under a sofa. I frowned.

  Monroe’s reactions were faster than mine. He dived after it, but he was too late. A fraction of a second later there was a blinding flash, a horrendously loud crack and the whole world slipped sideways. Again. This was becoming a bad habit.