by Raquel Lyon
Mrs Huckabee glanced down. “That has been redeemed—a pair of trousers, if memory serves.”
“But isn’t this a ticket to Chimmeris?”
“Goodness, no, dearie. Is that what you thought?”
“Um...” Piper looked sideways at Lambert and frowned. “I’m sorry. We made a mistake.” She pulled on his arm, urging him to leave, but he stood fast.
“Madam. I know you possess the means for interdimensional travel. I can sense the energy is close. Whatever you require for me to utilise it, I will procure, but I need to get home to Chimmeris.”
“You are from the Sixth?”
“Yes, madam, and it is imperative that I return.”
“I do not remember your face passing through here.”
“No, madam. I was brought here concealed by magic.”
“I see. Then we must return you to where you belong, and the only payment I require is your silence.”
“Agreed. I would like to leave as soon as possible.”
Mrs Huckabee reached into the neck of her blouse and drew out a chain. Hanging from the end of it was a small key. She didn’t have to bend far to use it to open a drawer in the counter. She pulled a book from inside and laid it on the surface, then flipped to a page of charts and tables. Her finger followed a circular diagram and stopped at some numbers.
“I have a fairly secure channel opening in about an hour. Just the one travelling, is it?”
Lambert turned to Piper and smiled. “Two.”
Mrs Huckabee nodded and bent to study her chart once more. “Should be able to manage that,” she said. “Why don’t you go and have a cup of tea and come back?” She smiled.
Lambert’s own smile spread wide. “Excellent. We shall return in an hour. Thank you, madam.”
Outside, Piper’s nerves grew. Was she really going to do this? She took deep breaths of the cool air.
“Are you feeling unwell?” Lambert asked.
“No. No, I’m fine. So... how do you want to kill an hour?”
“As I don’t much care for tea, perhaps we should return to the Towers? If we are leaving shortly, it has occurred to me that I should change my attire.” His eyes scanned down her body. “You might wish to as well.”
She glanced at her jeans. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”
“Women do not wear trousers in Chimmeris.” He stopped outside a vintage clothing shop and turned to the window. “Do you own any items such as that?”
Piper huffed. “The skirt that nearly touches the floor? No.”
“Then you should purchase it. The blouse, too.”
“I’m not wearing those.”
“If you do not, you will call attention to our presence, and I will die all the sooner.”
Piper wondered how it was he always managed to push her guilt buttons. “Okay. Okay. I’ll buy the damn things.”
*****
Piper tucked her father’s dagger into the waistband of her skirt and adjusted the suede waistcoat she’d decided to add to her ensemble, thinking that if she was playing dress-up, she might as well go the whole hog. She glanced at the clock. The minutes had passed quickly, and they would need to hurry if they were to make it back in time. Taking one last look at her room, she spotted the package lying on the bed. She’d forgotten all about it in her haste to get ready, but there wasn’t time to open it now. She closed the door and hastened to the landing, where Lambert was already waiting.
He gave her the once-over. “The hair is a nice touch,” he said.
Piper pulled her plait over her shoulder as they descended the steps. “Yeah, I haven’t worn it like this since I was a little girl.”
“It suits you.”
Piper smiled. “Thanks.”
As they crossed the hallway, Connor emerged from the living room. “Whoa. What’s with the getup?” he said.
Piper thought about lying, but their absence would be discovered soon enough when Sophie read the note she’d left. “I’m taking Lambert home.”
“Aren’t you from another dimension, mate?”
“I am,” he said.
“Then how?”
“We’re using a portal at the laundrette in town,” Piper said, “and we’ve got to go or we’ll be late.” She took a step towards the door but stopped when Connor spoke again.
“And after you drop him off, what then?”
“I hadn’t really thought that far.”
“I could tag along. See you safely home.”
“You? Why would you want to do that?”
Connor shrugged. “I’d rather not be here when that woman gets back and wants to start screwing with my head again. I’ve thought about taking off, but it’s not like I have anywhere to go, and, to be honest, I’m kinda missing some excitement.”
“But Sophie would be devastated.”
“Yeah, well, that’s another reason.” He glanced at Piper’s note on the hall table. “I’ll add a line to that. Come on. What d’ya say?”
Piper considered his proposal. Her decision to go had been a hasty one, and the details hadn’t been thought through. Whether she stayed or came back had yet to be decided, but Sophie would never forgive her if Connor left, so she tried to dissuade him. “You’re not wearing the right clothes.”
“A house like this has centuries of old shit lying around. I’ll come up with”—he ran his gaze over Lambert’s outfit—“something fitting.”
“But we haven’t time to wait. We’ll miss our slot.”
“I’m pretty quick. You go. I’ll be there.”
*****
When they arrived at the laundrette, Sophie was surprised to see Connor leaning against the doorway, arms folded. She hadn’t really believed he would make it, but here he was, large as life.
He opened his arms and grinned. “What d’ya think?” He was wearing a pair of old hunting trousers with braces that looped over a loose-fitting white shirt and some old boots with the laces half undone.
“Dorky enough, but I can’t get over how quickly you got here.”
“I tripped.” When Piper’s brows scrunched, he added, “Like teleporting. It’s a werewolf thing.”
“That figures. Must be what Sebastian did when he disappeared on me. Cool. I wish I could do that.”
Connor stood back to allow Piper to enter before him. “You have your magic, I have mine.”
When she saw them arrive, Mrs Huckabee looked up and tutted. She ushered them through to the back room with a rapid wave of her hands. “Dear, dear, I expected you back sooner. Quickly, now,” she said, giving Connor a second look with a tight expression. “You never mentioned a third party. More travellers means more time.”
“But it’s okay, right?” Piper asked, half-wishing she would say it wasn’t.
“Yes, yes. Hurry before it closes.”
Entering the room, Piper halted mid-step and stared. The far wall was moving—the centre of it sucking inwards like water draining down a plughole, and around it, ripples pulsed out across the wallpaper.
Lambert looked over his shoulder. “Ladies first.”
Piper shook her head nervously. “No, you.”
He took her hand. “Together?”
She nodded, and before she could catch her breath, he’d pulled her forward and the force snatched them into the brickwork.
Chapter Twenty-Three
SOPHIE SNUGGLED FURTHER under the covers, the creak of her bedroom door barely registering. She wasn’t usually one for sleeping in, but the events of the last few days had caught up with her, and she was bone-tired. Connor acting as if she was a complete stranger was a scenario that hadn’t crossed her mind, and being alone with him had been harder than she’d anticipated. She’d told herself she should be content he was alive and back home instead of rotting in a cold tomb, but she longed for him to look at her the way he used to, to pull her into his arms, and to tell her he was still in love with her. Their one beautiful night together felt like a lifetime away, and with his discomfort and
unease in her presence, she knew the likelihood of it ever being relived was slim to none.
Her mattress depressed with a bump, jolting her to consciousness.
“Sophie? It’s not like you to be in bed at this hour.”
Her eyes snapped open and the chill of her room licked her nose as she rolled over. Sebastian towered over her, grinning. “Seb? I’m so glad you’re home. I have so much to tell you.” He looked exhausted. His normally sharp eyes had faded, and she noticed a new line marked his brow.
“I have something to say myself.”
“Well, I hope it’s an apology,” she said, now fully awake. “You’ve been gone so long.”
“I know. I’m sorry, but it was with good reason. I have news. Now, I don’t want you to get excited—”
“I tried to call you.”
“You did?”
“Yes, many times,” she said, propping her head on her elbow “But then you knew that already, didn’t you? Just how many times did you check your long list of missed calls and ignore me?”
“I didn’t. I lost my phone.”
“Really? And you expect me to believe that old chestnut?”
“It’s the truth. You have no idea what I’ve been through since I left.”
“No. You’re right. I don’t. But perhaps that’s because you kept me in the dark, as usual. I’m your wife, Seb. We shouldn’t have secrets.”
“And if you’d shut up for a minute and let me tell you about my trip, we won’t have.”
“I know all about your trip to Calpious.”
“What? How? Did Jo tell you? He promised me—”
“Jo hasn’t shown his face since you left. It doesn’t matter how I know. What matters is that you didn’t see fit to tell me.”
“I didn’t want to worry you.”
“I’m not some delicate flower who needs protecting, Seb. I was there, remember?”
“Yes, I remember, and I remember telling you to stay at home. This trip might have been avoided if you’d have listened.”
“Oh, so it’s my fault, is it? I bet it feels good to finally say that out loud, doesn’t it? Has it been eating away inside you... every day, every minute of the last three years?”
“Sophie, calm down. What’s done is done. We cannot change the past. My only hope was that I might retrieve a small part of what our family lost, and it is precisely this reaction I sought to avoid.”
“You could have avoided it by telling me where you were going.”
“And bring back the pain of that day, fresh to your mind, when there was very little chance of my success?”
Sophie wanted to tell him that the pain couldn’t be brought back because it had never gone away, and she’d had to live with it, along with the guilt, every single second following that day. Connor’s return had eased it somewhat, but she would never be able to vanquish it fully until he regained his memory.
She smiled inwardly. The knowledge that the coin had flipped and that she was the one now keeping secrets surprisingly filled her with a small measure of satisfaction. It was almost a shame it was a secret she wouldn’t be able to retain for very long, but at least she’d get to see the look on Sebastian’s face when she told him.
“And was it a success?” she asked. “Did you find Seth?”
“Yes,” he said, nodding. “Trapped under half the cave wall and in every sense a dead man.”
“Except he isn’t a man.”
“No. His werewolf genes were the only thing that allowed him to cling to a thread of life. How much of that life is retrievable remains to be seen.”
“Is he here?”
“No. The Assembly are taking care of him. They have the best facilities for this kind of thing. It’s a waiting game now.”
Sophie laid her head back against the pillow and stared at the ceiling. It had been hard enough informing Connor that his father was dead, and now she’d have to tell him he wasn’t... quite. Just in some kind of vegetative state with no guarantee of that fact ever changing, but maybe seeing his father could be the trigger to evoke something?
Sebastian swung his legs onto the bed and lay down beside her. “You understand why I had to go?”
“You still should have told me.”
“I’m sorry.”
Sophie sighed. ‘Sorry’ was a word he used far too often.
“Would you like me to apologise again?” he asked when she remained silent.
“No.”
His finger trailed along her arm. “I missed you.”
She’d missed him too, and she hated herself for it: hated the way her skin always responded to his touch and hated her body for wanting him when she was trying to be mad at him. How was she supposed to keep it up?
His fingers curved under her chin and he leaned in, stopping a hair’s breadth from her lips as if he expected her to stop him. She didn’t. But when her eyes closed, it was Connor she pictured kissing her, and she hated herself all over again. She couldn’t do it. She couldn't keep her secret any longer. She had to tell him.
Pushing some distance between them, she swallowed and took a calming breath as she stared into his puzzled eyes.
“What is it?” he asked.
“While you were away finding Seth, I found someone, too.”
His eyes narrowed. “Please tell me it wasn’t another man.”
“Actually, it was.”
A red glow flashed across his irises. “I’ll kill him.”
“I already did that, although he appears to have survived it.”
“You’re not making any sense, Soph.”
“That’s because you’ve got the wrong idea. You’re very quick to jump to the wrong conclusion, by the way. Do you think that little of our marriage?”
“Of course not. Stop changing the subject and tell me.”
“It’s Connor. I found Connor.” There, she’d said it.
Sebastian clamped his jaw shut and his face tightened. It was not the reaction she’d expected.
“Say something,” she said.
He huffed softly. “Are you trying to punish me with words?”
“Punish you? No.”
“Con died.”
“I know, but he’s here. He’s been with me for days.”
“His ghost?”
“No, he’s real. I promise. I can touch him.”
“I don’t smell him on you, Soph, and I think I’d remember his scent.”
“That’s because I haven’t actually touched him.” She threw back the covers and reached for her dressing gown.
“You expect me to believe that Connor has returned and you haven’t had a heart-warming reconciliation?”
“He’s... not himself. He doesn’t remember me or anything about his life.”
“You’re stretching it now, babe.”
“It’s true.”
Sebastian bowed his head and let out a sigh. “This is all my fault.”
“What is?” Sophie said, tying the sash to her gown.
“This is why I didn’t tell you about going to Calpious. I didn’t want you bringing back memories of Con when I thought you’d come to accept that he’s gone. I can’t believe you found out and it happened regardless. I should have sent someone else to search for Seth, but instead I left you alone with your imagination. If I hadn’t gone, it never would have happened, but it’s okay. I’m here to help you now.”
“I don’t need help. I need Connor. I’m going to find him so that you can see I’m telling the truth.”
“Sophie, don’t do this to yourself,” he pleaded, following her out to the landing.
Ignoring him, Sophie strode along the corridor and knocked on Connor’s door. “Con, are you in there?” Silence greeted her, so she knocked again. “I’m sorry to disturb you, but Seb’s back and he thinks I’ve gone mad.” She opened Connor’s door and was disappointed to find his bed empty. “Well, it’s late. He’s probably up already,” she said, turning to go downstairs. Sebastian snagged her arm, but she shrugged
him off. “I’m going to prove it to you.” She ran down the stairs with Sebastian close at her heels.
After searching every room in the house, she threw the front door wide to search the grounds. A brisk wind gusted through the opening. “It seems everyone has gone out,” she said, closing it again and turning to find Sebastian picking a piece of paper from the floor and perching on the edge of the hall table to look at it. “What’s that?”
“See for yourself.”
Sophie took the note from him and scanned the words.
Dear Sophie,
Sorry for not telling you in person, but I didn’t want to wake you. Lambert has decided to return home, and I’m going with him. Not sure when I’ll be back.
Don’t worry about me.
Piper. x
Sophie’s shoulders sank. “I don’t believe it,” she said.
“That we might have to put a ‘vacancies’ sign on the door?”
She shook the note. “You did read this?”
“Glanced at it, yes.”
“Then you saw what’s scrawled across the bottom corner? ‘Me, too. Tell the witch I’m taking a break’?” she said.
“And?”
“That’s Connor’s writing.”
Sebastian snatched the paper back from her fingers and stared at it with a scrunched brow.
“I think he’s gone with them,” she said.
Chapter Twenty-Four
PIPER BLINKED OPEN her eyes and wondered if she had died and gone to Hell. It was bad enough that she felt as if she’d just been sucked up a vacuum cleaner and thrown out of the other side, but she still had a buzzing noise vibrating in her ears, and the oppressive heat thickening the air was cloying at her throat and making it difficult to breathe. Her hip throbbed where she’d landed on the hard surface, warmed as if the sun had been beating down on it for hours. But there was no sun. Above her, steam filled the air and spiralled up to meet a sky of swirling orange and grey clouds.
She pushed to sitting. Her head pounded as she looked around. All she saw was rock. Under her fingers, the surface was mainly smooth with the occasional circular dent, but further away, sharper fragments scattered the base of a small cliff.