The Singer

by Elizabeth Hunter

  He followed his nose down the narrow staircase. Unlike the scribe house in Cappadocia, the one in Budapest was showing its age. Frayed carpets lined the hallway, and Malachi could see stains on the walls. Even the lights seemed to flicker with uncertainty.

  Luckily, the kitchen showed no such deterioration. Food was spread over the table, with a stocky man at the head. He was sandy-haired and fair-skinned, but his eyes and smile showed faint traces of the city where he lived.

  “Good morning,” he said. He was American. Malachi didn’t know why that was surprising.

  “Good morning.”

  “I’m going to assume you still like a big breakfast,” Phillip said. He nudged the shoulder of the younger man sitting to his right. “Victor, move. Let my friend sit down.”

  Victor didn’t seem offended. The young man simply picked up his plate and moved a few chairs down at the massive kitchen table, which was spread with all manner of food. Steaming plates of sausages and bacon. Thick slices of brown bread and cheeses, along with the stuffed peppers he’d smelled from his room upstairs. Eggs. Pâté. It was a feast fit for the group of massive men who filled the room.

  Phillip waved to the chair and Malachi sat down. Rhys took the chair opposite him.

  “My mother would be proud,” Phillip said with a grin. “That is, she would be if I’d cooked any of it.”

  “Who cooked?” Malachi asked, immediately beginning to fill his plate. For some reason, he felt as if he hadn’t eaten in days.

  Phillip nodded to another man who stood at the sink. “You can thank Tas. He may be from the country, but he knows how to cook.”

  Tas shrugged and reached for a pack of cigarettes by the window. “I know how to cook because I’m from the country, you American idiot,” he said in thickly accented English. He lit up the cigarette, scraping a hand over a jaw that looked like it hadn’t seen a razor in days.

  Phillip smiled again. “I’m smart enough to make sure you’re the one cooking for guests, aren’t I?”

  Rhys and Malachi shared a smile as the Budapest scribes laughed. Even Tas gave what Malachi guessed was as close to a smile as he ever reached, then he turned back to the stove. Phillip spoke again as the quiet hum of morning conversation filled the room.

  “You got in so late last night we didn’t get a chance to catch up.”

  Rhys said, “Life has been… interesting lately.”

  “I heard about the fire,” Phillip said, shoveling eggs onto the edge of his toast. “And that Damien went to the city to petition funds to rebuild.” Phillip cast his eyes around the room and shook his head. “Good luck to him; he’ll need it. I’ve been struggling to get promised funds for years now. The bureaucrats are not very receptive. I’m assuming you’re on your way to join him.”

  “Not exactly,” Malachi said, exchanging a glance with Rhys.

  Rhys said, “It’s a bit more complicated than that, Phillip.” He directed his eyes toward the younger scribes at the other end of the table. Phillip caught the glance and barked out something that sounded like an order. Within minutes, the men had filled their plates with food and abandoned the room, leaving Malachi, Rhys, and Leo alone with Phillip and the sullen Tas, who grabbed an ashtray and joined them at the table, a cup of black coffee in front of him.

  Phillip said, “Tas is my second. He’s very trustworthy. Anything said to me can be shared with him.” Then he turned to Malachi. “What’s going on? You seem different. What’s happened to you?”

  Leo said, “You don’t miss much, do you?”

  Sharp green eyes met Malachi’s. “No, I don’t. And I’ve known this one longer than you’ve been alive, boy.”

  Malachi slowly chewed the bacon in his mouth, swallowed, and set down his coffee cup.

  “Technically,” he said, “that might not be true anymore.”

  Phillip’s mouth still hung open. “So… you’re telling me—”

  “I was dead. And now I’m not.”

  “And your mate—congratulations, by the way—your mate actually…”

  “Brought me back.” Malachi and Rhys looked at each other. “We think.”

  Rhys said, “We’re not sure. We’re not sure of much, to be honest.”

  “And you don’t remember who you are?”

  “I’m starting to,” Malachi said. “It’s coming in pieces.”

  “Certain things don’t seem to be a problem,” Leo said. “When he scribed his new talesm—”

  Phillip and Tas hissed out simultaneous curses, and Phillip said, “You lost your talesm, brother?”

  “Yes.”

  Tas said something unintelligible under his breath, but it didn’t sound good.

  “No, I can’t even imagine,” Phillip said to him before he turned back to Malachi. “And your mate has disappeared with Damien?”

  Malachi nodded.

  “Taken to Sari,” Tas said, the cigarette hanging from his lips as he reached across the table to help himself to another sausage. “He took her to his mate. Fierce woman. She’ll be fine.”

  Phillip frowned. “Only she still thinks he’s dead, you idiot.”

  Tas shrugged his wide shoulders. “But he’s not. It will work out.” He sucked in another lungful of smoke, then exhaled, saying, “Why are you going to the city when she’s not there?”

  Rhys said, “We think Gabriel knows where Sari is.”

  Tas let out a grim chuckle. “He probably does, but he won’t tell you. No one can tell you.”

  Malachi’s eyes narrowed on the dark man, who seemed to know even more than the watcher of the house. “Why do you say that?”

  Tas’s hooded eyes gleamed. “Old, old magic over that place. Even Irina who have lived there can’t tell you where it is.” Then the corner of his lip curled up. “Trust me. If she could have told me, she would have.”

  Rhys leaned toward Tas. “Wait, you’ve met an Irina from Sari’s home?”

  A secret smile played along his lips. “More of Sari’s Irina around than most scribes know. They avoid Damien’s territory for obvious reasons, but they’re out there.”

  Malachi looked to Phillip.

  “It’s true,” the watcher admitted. “And these are not the Irina we remember. They’re ruthless. As far back as I can remember, the scribe mandate has been clear: Protect the humans. Kill the Grigori when they attack, but keep away if they’re not interfering, so as not to provoke the Fallen.” He nodded to Malachi. “I believe you and I had words over that policy more than once. But the fact is, unless they’re attacking humans, scribes leave Grigori alone.”

  Tas said, “But that’s not the Irina mandate. I doubt they even have one. If they do, it’s much more brutal than ours. We found a Grigori house here in Budapest five years ago with not a soul in it.”

  Leo asked, “What do you mean?”

  “I mean the beds were slept in. The lights were on. But there was nothing but dust in the air.”

  “All dead?” Malachi asked. “And you’re positive it wasn’t a scribe?”

  Tas gave another one of his infuriating shrugs. “It might have been a rogue scribe who defied protocol… Or it might have been the long-legged beauty with the Italian name I met the next night, drinking alone and looking mad at the world.” He grinned. “She wasn’t mad all night.”

  Leo spoke in a low voice. “What was her name?”

  Tas’s eyes rested on Leo, measuring him, as he lit another cigarette, inhaled, and let out a long stream of smoke. “Renata. Her name was Renata. And she was one of Sari’s Irina. That’s all I know.”

  Rhys said, “But you said she would have told you… if she could.”

  “Well, that’s what she said. She might have been trying to let me down easy when she left the next morning.” He glanced at Malachi. “Women, eh?”

  “I wouldn’t say.”

  “Or are you one of those scribes who think your mate descended from heaven itself?”

  Malachi’s eyes narrowed. “I’m a scribe who doesn’t presume t
o make judgments based on limited experience.” Then he smirked. “Even though my mate is a glimpse of heaven.”

  Tas muttered something in Hungarian as Phillip’s hand clapped down on Malachi’s shoulder. “This is interesting! So, we have a scribe raised from the dead by his mate—which as far as I know, hasn’t happened before—and an Irina who seems to have come out of nowhere and has now disappeared into nowhere, though I imagine she’s very safe with Damien. We have Grigori who are now being hunted on two fronts—Irin and Irina—and that might account for the escalation we’re seeing here and other places—”

  “What escalation?” Rhys broke in, but Phillip only raised a hand and continued.

  “And we still have an elder council in Vienna who believes that nothing is wrong except the health of their pocketbooks!”

  “They know something is going on,” Tas said. “Why do you think some of the Irina have returned?”

  “What?” Leo said. “What do you mean? They’re back?”

  “In the city, yes. Only a few,” Phillip said. “Mostly mates of prominent council members or businessmen. It’s all very…”

  “Calculated,” Tas finished. “And very quiet. They’re not seen much. Only when their mates need them to be seen. The idiots in the city are planning something.”

  “What could the Irin council be planning about the Irina?” Leo asked. “And what about this escalation?”

  Phillip stood and walked to the counter, refilling his coffee before he turned. “It’s not in Vienna, of course. That city is still a bubble of peace. But here, it’s bad. I was speaking with Yakov in Odessa just last week. He’s feeling pressure from the Russian territories. And Poland. Slovakia.”

  “That’s not good,” Rhys said.

  “No, but the bigger surprise is the West. England and Scandinavia are still relatively quiet, but there’s more activity in France and the Netherlands than there has been since the Rending. Some in Germany.”

  Malachi said, “But not Vienna?”

  “There’s a reason that Irin society is based in Vienna, Malachi. It’s in the very heart of Europe. Surrounded by scribe houses and strongholds in the East and the West. There have always been Grigori in Europe, but not nearly as many as other parts of the world.”

  “So it’s protected?”

  “It has been. That’s part of the reason the Irin living there are so complacent. They don’t see Grigori attacks every week. If they see one a year, it’s shocking.”

  “That makes sense,” he said.

  Tas asked, “Is it true Jaron is no longer controlling the Grigori in Istanbul? Not that there’s anything like a good Fallen, but he wasn’t as bad as Volund. And he didn’t breed Grigori like rabbits.”

  Leo shook his head. “We don’t know what Jaron is doing. We’re fairly sure the attack that killed Malachi was from Volund’s people, not Jaron’s.”

  Phillip mused, “If Volund is making a concentrated push to expand his territory, he’d go for the outlying territories first. Turkey doesn’t fit with that.”

  Malachi said, “But if he’s reaching down from Russia and into the Ukraine, then Turkey isn’t that far off.”

  Rhys said, “He’d run into Svarog.”

  Phillip shook his head. “Volund doesn’t fear Svarog.”

  “He should.”

  “What does he want?” Malachi muttered, picturing a map of eastern Europe in his mind. He pulled back, looked at all the continent. Not as the humans did, with their constantly changing borders. He pictured the slowly shifting spheres of power, ebbing and flowing with the centuries. One Fallen rose, another slowly toppled. Where was Volund in that cycle? And why had Jaron ceded power of Istanbul when he had held if for centuries?

  Irin presence shone through Europe, a bright glowing thread that wove through most of the major cities; its brightest star being Vienna.

  “What does Volund want?” Malachi asked again.

  Phillip shrugged. “Power. To control as much territory as possible. And wipe out the Irin, of course. It’s always been the theory that Volund was the primary force behind the Rending.”

  Malachi’s eyes narrowed. “So…”

  Rhys said, “But you said there’s more activity in the West, too. It’s not just coming from one direction. Volund has little influence in western Europe.”

  “We all have allies,” Malachi said, more and more of the picture snapping into place. “Volund’s strongest area has always been Russia, correct?”

  “Since he destroyed Barak.” Leo smiled. “How did you know that?”

  “I just did. Concentrate.” He spread his hands over the table, using cups and silverware to mark his mental map. “Volund wants to expand his influence from his base in Russia, but he doesn’t want to be noticed. What does he do?” He grabbed a saltshaker near his right elbow. “He gets Jaron out of Istanbul.”

  “Or Jaron leaves,” Rhys said. “Either way, he’s gone.”

  “And with him, the strongest competition for dominance in the east. Svarog is cunning, but he does not hunger for power.”

  “And how did you know that?” Rhys asked.

  “I don’t know! It doesn’t matter.” Malachi’s left arm came up and rested on the table, across from his right and on the opposite side of the map. “Now Volund comes from the north and the east. He needs help from the west, but according to you, Phillip, he’s getting it.”

  Phillip nodded. “There are more Grigori popping up in France and Germany. Spain is still relatively stable. Grigori leadership there is fractured. It used to be controlled by Barak, but Volund killed him. Now we don’t really know who controls it.”

  “But we know something is happening there.” Malachi’s left and right arms began to move closer together, showing the direction of movement across the map. “Volund controls the Grigori in the north. He’s moving in the east”—he lifted his right arm—“and someone else is moving in the west.” He lifted his left. “Volund wants to wipe the Irin from the earth. And where is the center of the Irin world?”

  “Vienna,” Leo said. “But—”

  “Exactly. And why would Volund send an arrow to Vienna when he could give them…” His arms closed in on a mental point in the center of the table. “A nice, slow hug?”

  Chapter Twelve

  The words Orsala had taught her slipped from her lips, an ancient incantation that set Ava’s blood humming.

  “Shanda vash…”

  This was Power.

  She could feel it welling up, stirring under her skin as the words took shape on her tongue. A spell to distract and disarm an enemy. Ancient words. Holy words. Dangerous words…

  Bruno winced and closed his eyes. “Yes. She’s definitely hit it.”

  “What do you feel?” Orsala asked.

  “Like if she doesn’t stop I’m going to lose my lunch on your lovely Turkish carpet, Orsala.”

  “Details, Bruno. I need to know the effects.”

  “There’s a—a piercing pain in my temple. A—and my limbs feel weak, as well.”

  “Excellent. She’s only been practicing this one for a few days.”

  His voice was strained. “I’m serious. I’m about to throw up.”

  Ava barely heard him. The magic was too heady. Like wine, it seeped into her blood and went straight to her head. It wasn’t the painful jolt of power she’d felt in the cistern. Orsala had taught her control, so the words she spoke flowed from her belly, up her throat, and left her mouth softly. Weaker magic, perhaps, but magic she could hold far longer.

  Speak.

  The dark voice called her.

  Yes…

  “Ava.” She felt the hand on her shoulder as if in a dream. “Enough.”

  Bruno’s hand was at his temple. “Orsala,” he forced out the words. “I can’t—”

  “Ava, you need to stop.” Orsala’s grip was firmer. Her words more clear. “Now. Release the magic.”

  Not yet…

  Bruno was barely standing. His face was pale. �
�Orsala…”

  “Shanda huul!”

  The old woman’s words hit her in the stomach like a punch. Ava gasped, rocking back on her heels as the force of her own spell was turned against her. She could feel the pain in her head, like the high whine of a piercing whistle. It turned her stomach inside out, and she almost fell down when her knees buckled. Bruno caught her before she hit the ground.

  “There you are,” he said. His eyes still carried hints of pain, but he was smiling. “Got a taste of your own medicine, did you?”

  “How were you even standing through that?” she choked out.

  Orsala said, “He’s a bear. And a very good-natured one at that. Thank you, Bruno.”

  The great man enclosed her in an embrace, pressing his hand to her cheek. The warm affection flowed into her like a hug against her soul. “That was a lot of magic you were wielding. Not even my Karen at her angriest has hit me like that.”

  “I’m so sorry.” With the heady rush of power dissipating in the room, Ava felt the guilt rush in. She’d caused him pain, and she’d held it for long minutes. She’d only felt a second of her spell turned on her and it made her want to curl in a ball and sleep for a week.

  He laughed. “It’s fine! I’m happy to help you practice. How do you feel, sister?”

  “Tired. You?”

  “Hungry.”

  “Hungry? How can you be hungry after that?”

  “I am a scribe of tremendous appetite.” He set Ava on her feet and stepped back. Then he patted his belly and looked toward the door. “Are we done here? I need to find my woman.”

  “You are a beast,” Orsala said. “Go. And thank you, Bruno.”

  He left Orsala’s cottage whistling.

  Ava watched him through the window. “That is the most cheerful man I’ve ever met.”

  Orsala smiled. “He is a treasure to us. Gentle as a dove and strong as an ox.”

  She turned and looked at some of the pictures scattered over the walls. Family pictures. Friends. A few paintings.

  “He and Karen don’t have any children?”

  Orsala shook her head. “They lost a daughter during the Rending. They have not had another.”