by Liz de Jager
Dante and Aiden haul Merrick up and I follow close behind.
‘What do we do with him?’ Dante asks me as we walk out into the sunlight. ‘Question him?’
‘I think we send a message to Zane. Tell him we’ve got a friend of his.’
Merrick’s head snaps up and he scowls at me. ‘You know nothing, girl. Nothing.’
‘I think we know enough, Merrick. You make the drugs and peddle them to Caleb Jericho, who then distributes them into the clubs. We know you’re using Pensa’s business contacts to store the drugs for you too. How many businesses is that throughout the UK, Merrick? Fifty? Seventy? A hundred? That means plenty of storage places, but it’s fine. We’ve got a list. We’ll hit them all.’ I stare at him for a few seconds. ‘Bring him. I’ve a circle prepared to take him back to the Otherwhere. It won’t take long to sort out. I’ve one of the Stormborn meeting me.’
‘No. Wait. There’s so very much more to the story.’ Merrick scowls and tries to shrug off both Aiden and Dante but it only makes them hold on tighter. ‘Blackhart, you are in so much trouble, you honestly have no idea.’
‘Why don’t you tell us?’ Dante stops and stares down at Merrick. ‘You’re dying to do just that, aren’t you? Tell us your grand plan.’
Merrick tries to take a step back but Aiden’s chest is blocking his escape. ‘If you let me go, I’ll do my best to keep your name out of all of this that’s happened,’ he says, his voice low, confident. ‘Think about it, Blackhart.’
‘I think not, Merrick. I know you’re hardly the innocent pawn being manipulated into doing this.’ I pull off my mask and let it dangle around my neck. ‘You’re not getting any kind of deal, but you are going to reveal the identity of Zane’s boss, as Zane’s definitely not the one running all of this.’
Merrick laughs then, and I resist the urge to hit him. ‘You’ve not figured that out yet?’
‘Can I hit him now, Kit?’ Aiden asks me. ‘Hawke will never know.’
‘No,’ Dante says, tugging Merrick away from Aiden. ‘I think Merrick and I are going to chat privately about this.’
Merrick’s eyes widen. ‘I am not going anywhere with you, kami.’
Dante tightens his grip on Merrick’s arm and I see the Fae blanch at his touch. A sudden sense of wrongness sweeps over me and I start towards them, but Dante gives me a shake of the head before addressing Merrick.
‘It will be fun, I promise.’
‘Dante, don’t do anything stupid.’ My voice, even to my ears, sounds flat and tired.
‘I won’t. We’re just going to talk about what Merrick knows. And how he uses his glamour to charm young humans to come with him, when they really should know better.’
I suddenly remember Antone Pensa telling us of Merrick’s predilection for young human girls and bile rises in my throat.
‘Dante.’
‘Kit. Trust me with this.’
I hear the quietness in his voice and notice how his grip on Merrick tightens a little. The Fae is so ordinary-looking, even without his glamour. I realize he’s one of life’s invisible people, with no charisma to speak of, so he must have some other kind of trick when approaching people.
‘Whatever you’re planning on doing, Alexander, hurry it up. SOCA’s ETA is fifteen minutes,’ Rocco’s voice comes over the comms.
‘Roger that,’ I say. Dante takes advantage of my distraction to march Merrick away towards some crates. I don’t expect to see the blue flames that drop from his outspread hands as he crowds Merrick into a corner, and I realize that the feeling of dread that stole over me previously was Dante drawing on his magic – not necessarily his siren magic, but something else, the stuff we’ve only lightly researched. The kami are heavily linked to the earth’s leylines, being nature spirits. And the Fae get most of their magic from leylines – and the kami are rumoured to have the ability to snuff out another Fae’s connection to that magic completely. Dante didn’t even have to trot out his full repertoire to frighten the young female faerie at the Soho club. He merely lurked with intent and played with those blue flames, threatening to snuff her out. And it would seem that’s what he’s planning on doing now too, with Merrick.
I hesitate, uncertain whether to move closer to rein him in, when Aiden just shakes his head.
‘You already freaked Merrick out, telling Dante to not to do anything stupid.’
‘What?’
‘You did what Dante wanted you to do. You panicked a little and Merrick picked up on that. I could hear his heartbeat escalate because there was a hint that you, Kit Blackhart, didn’t trust Dante to behave himself.’
I still look at him uncomprehendingly.
‘Kit, you have a reputation for doing dumb things. For you to tell someone else not to do a dumb thing is pretty bloody terrifying.’
‘Oh.’ I frown, trying to digest that. ‘Oh, well, that’s okay then, I think.’ I look over to where they’re standing. Dante’s talking and Merrick looks as if he wants to be sick.
‘What are they saying?’
Aiden tilts his head a little and closes his eyes. ‘Merrick is giving Dante some attitude. Dante’s not really saying much and it’s freaking Merrick out. Oh – he’s just done something and it smells like ozone burning.’
‘Crap, he’s messing with the leylines.’ I start forward and Aiden’s right behind me. I don’t run but it’s a near thing. By the time we get there, Merrick is sagging. Sweat has pooled on his upper lip and he looks about to cry. There’s no sign of his previous bravado and he looks miserable. I spare him a glance but focus on Dante, who has the grace to look a little guilty.
‘We okay here?’
‘We are. Turns out Merrick will be more than happy to take us to Zane and clear up this whole mess for us.’ Dante pats the Fae’s shoulder.
As much as it pains me, I feel I have to check on the Fae, despite wanting to walk away. ‘Merrick. Are you okay?’
In answer the Fae gives a shuddering breath and makes a valiant effort to wipe his face. ‘I’m fine, truly, Blackhart. I have agreed to help you, now let’s go.’ With that he straightens and rolls his shoulders. ‘Lead the way.’
I gesture for Dante to start walking. I fall in behind Merrick; he doesn’t take his eyes off Dante. Dante’s magic is still a grey area and we don’t really know his full capabilities. He’s been keeping a tight lid on them and I suspect that this has been a damaging experience for him.
Rocco looks up from where he’s packing his equipment into the van.
‘We’re ready to go as soon as Hawke comes through those doors,’ Rocco says, and nods at Dante. ‘You okay, kid? You look a little … high?’
Dante runs an unsteady hand through his hair. ‘I’m okay. Just a bit wired.’
Rocco grunts noncommittally and looks over as Hawke and his team exit the warehouse and pile into their van.
Aiden pulls up in the Audi and I help Merrick into the back seat. For a second I hesitate, staring at Dante over the roof of the car, but he gives me a questioning look.
‘Front or back, Kit?’
‘Back,’ I say, sliding in behind Merrick. ‘You go next to Aide.’
We leave the warehouses behind and, as we approach a large intersection, we pass an ominous-looking convoy of large black SUVs, driving at full speed. I wonder if they’re bound for the warehouse complex.
‘Where to?’ I ask Merrick. ‘Where do we go?’
The Fae tears his gaze from the road and, after shooting a brief look at Dante, stares at me, looking miserable.
‘There’s a gateway beneath Tower Bridge,’ he says. ‘We gain entrance there.’
Chapter Thirty-Nine
It starts snowing heavily halfway into central London, and the traffic is snarled up around the Houses of Parliament because of some protest. By the time we reach Tower Bridge, it’s late afternoon and I’m tired, hungry and feel a little feverish. We radioed our thanks to Hawke and his team, before peeling away as soon as we hit London. They’d passed by us wi
th cheery waves and promises to keep in touch.
Holding onto my sword, I cast a glamour over it so it looks like an umbrella, then pull Merrick out of the car. We head towards the nearest coffee shop to make use of the facilities and get something to eat and drink. The boys follow and place the drinks orders.
In the toilets, I splash water on my face and stare at myself in the mirror. I am pale and my eyes are massive in my face, which looks far too thin. All I needed to complete my take on emo goth-Kit was heavy eyeliner and black lipstick. Beneath my scarf, the bruises around my neck stand out horribly in the bad overhead lighting. I touch the largest and wince a little before readjusting the concealing scarf.
Back in the coffee shop, Merrick’s very quiet and only sips half-heartedly at the god-awful camomile tea Aiden bought him. He barely looks away from Dante the whole time.
‘My dad’s home,’ Aiden says, after I’ve demolished part of my toasted sandwich. I’m sure Aiden must have heard my stomach rumble, hence the food. ‘So are Andrew and your aunt, and Megan.’
I stare at him in surprise. ‘Why didn’t you say anything before?’
‘Because they called you too. But I don’t think you have your phone with you.’
I dig in my pocket and hold up my phone. It’s dead. ‘I hate technology,’ I tell no one in particular. ‘So what do they want us to do? Get back there?’
‘Yes. Andrew’s annoyed we’re not home.’
‘They sent us with Hawke and his guys to take the Glow thing to the next stage,’ I mutter. ‘What do they expect us to do? Sit at home and wait for it all to happen while we watch remotely?’
‘I get that impression sometimes.’ Aiden’s smile is strained. ‘Anyway, at least with them home, I know that Connor and Shaun are being looked after.’
I throw back the rest of my hot chocolate and button up my coat. The guys do the same and when we exit the coffee shop, my breath plumes in the air.
‘I swear it’s colder than it was ten minutes ago,’ I say, shivering and hunching my shoulders. I check for traffic and walk towards the Embankment. The Thames lies grey and sluggish beneath us and there are very few people in the area.
‘Are we heading to the troll caves?’ I ask Merrick, and don’t miss how he blinks in surprise at the question. ‘Let’s go, time’s wasting.’
We follow him along the Embankment until we can see the Tower of London across the water and, closer to hand, a flight of narrow stairs leading down to the river. There’s a new gate there and I take a steadying breath. Then I push at the gate, at the same time as saying, ‘I command thee, open.’
It swings open on silent hinges.
‘Kit,’ Dante says. ‘There’s a hell of lot of water at the bottom of these stairs. Are you going to do something about that?’
‘Keep walking, Dante. Trust me.’
He utters a weary sigh but leads the way down, regardless. The water laps briefly at his feet but then, as I remember from almost a year ago, the illusion vanishes and we’re standing on a muddy riverbank.
‘That is so cool,’ he mutters and stands there staring at the Thames that laps at the little beach as if it’s the sea. Then he turns to look at me. ‘Now what?’
‘Now, Merrick is going to open a doorway for us.’ I smile at Merrick. ‘Aren’t you?’
He shoots a glance at Dante, who doesn’t seem to be paying him any attention and is instead staring up at the bridge almost directly above us.
‘Yes, of course.’ Merrick scrabbles in his pockets and brings out a bit of chalk. ‘Can you just move … to the side? A bit more? Thank you.’
I try to keep track of the sigils he draws on the stone before they sink away. The door he sketches is large and I slide my fingers towards the button on my wrist that propels my baton forward. If this guy is messing us around, I won’t hesitate to take him out.
Then, far sooner than I could have managed, Merrick steps back, examines the door and gives a brief, satisfied nod. He holds a hand out to me.
‘If you could cut my finger, Blackhart?’
I pull a small ring dagger from my hip pocket and, steadying his hand, I nick the skin just enough for blood to well up. He presses the blood to the top and both sides of the door as snow starts to fall.
‘Now what?’ Aiden asks us.
‘We wait.’
A full minute passes before Aiden twitches. ‘So, let me get this straight,’ he says, looking at Merrick. ‘You’ve just decided to help us. No questions asked.’
‘I’m helping you because my I value my life and my abilities. Without them, I’m nothing. Worthless to friends and easy prey to a great many foes.’ He shoots sour looks at Dante, who looks too innocent by far.
‘Did you threaten him?’ I demand of Dante. ‘Or did you promise him something?’
‘No. We just spoke.’
There’s no lie there, I can sense it, and it only deepens Aiden’s scowl.
‘So what’s the plan, anyway? We go through the gateway, enter the Otherwhere, and then what?’
‘We get to Zane. We force him to tell us who’s behind the Glow mess.’
‘As easy as that?’ Aiden’s voice shows how unlikely he thinks that will be. ‘No fighting, no almost dying?’
‘Don’t be an ass,’ Dante says with a laugh, but he looks uncomfortable. ‘No one is dying. Not now, anyway.’
Their banter is broken off by the doorway opening, only marginally. A pair of baleful white eyes squints out at us from the darkness behind it.
‘Who calls?’
‘It is me, old mother. Merrick. I have guests with me. We need access to the tunnels, to see Zane.’
There’s a snort and I lift my scarf up to cover my nose at the foul smell of the air seeping out of the tunnels ahead.
‘Come, then.’
There are shuffling noises as the creature moves off. Merrick looks over his shoulder at us, before gesturing feebly towards the doorway. I prod him in the back and we enter the passage. The smell is awful and I try not to see what I’m walking on. It feels squishy.
The tunnels here are completely different to those I entered with Thorn. They are dark, damp and smell horrible. The small hunched figure scuttling ahead of us is also not the guide I was expecting. Is this what happens to the trolls’ tunnels when they vacate their lair? Or are we somewhere else entirely?
‘I’d like to point out, once more, how much I hate being underground,’ Aiden complains behind me. ‘It smells bad and I can’t stand upright. Also, why does this feel like a trap?’
‘Stop it,’ I hiss. ‘It’s not a trap. How can it be a trap?’
‘Because this is us, Blackhart.’
I want nothing more than to reach back and slap him but there’s a noise ahead. I stumble over absolutely nothing and fall against Merrick and he shoves me away from him. We emerge into a large cavern and, as I adjust my hold on the Fae’s shoulder, I look up – and my jaw drops open.
It totally is a trap.
‘I don’t want to say it …’ Aiden says, wiping a bloody hand across his shirt, before turning to kick a weird spindly creature made from sticks into a cage and slamming the door.
‘So don’t,’ I huff as I parry a blow from a redcap who’s doing his utmost to separate my head from my shoulders.
‘More fighting, less talking,’ Dante pants as he grabs one of the smaller goblins and punches it into the wall.
Merrick has disappeared in the confusion and I waste no time in taking out my frustration on the remaining redcaps that hurl themselves at us. As Merrick ran from the cavern, Dante shouted after him, which prompted a terrified look. But then he just pushed the largest redcap at us and ran for his life.
Since then we’ve been trying to fight our way through a crowd of creatures to follow him. But we are bogged down, and appear to have been doing this for the past million years now.
I have no idea how the fight is going because, really, there are so many redcaps and goblins that I’ve lost track of who I’ve
punched, kicked and stabbed. And they just keep coming in a never-ending stream.
‘We need,’ Aiden huffs as he ducks an overhead swing, ‘to get the hell out of here.’ He grabs his opponent by the shirt and head-butts him hard, before lifting him and tossing him at a group of four advancing redcaps.
‘I know,’ I grind out, and pull my sword from a fallen goblin’s ribs with some difficulty. ‘I’d gladly follow any plan you might have.’
‘Back the way we came, maybe,’ Dante offers, clapping me on the shoulder as he surveys the mess of bodies and limbs strewn around us in the cave. ‘You get us back out into the human world and we’ll hold them off.’
‘I like it,’ I say, glancing over my shoulder at the passageway we left. ‘But it means Merrick gets away.’
‘It doesn’t matter. We know Zane’s the next step on the rung. We just need to get to him, that’s all.’
‘Guys? I think we need to go. Now.’ Aiden lifts a kukri blade from the floor. ‘Something’s coming and it sounds big.’
I don’t wait to see what he’s heard. Instead I find the chalk in my pocket and run for the passage behind us. It’s easy here to access my magic. I sketch a hasty spell of protection on the walls and ceiling and, praying it will hold, I whistle loudly to get attention.
They come running, Aiden first and Dante behind. They’re both out of breath and covered in blood – and Dante’s lip has split, making me wince. As soon as they’re past me, I nick my finger and slam my hand into the wall, activating the spell. The soft whump makes me grin in triumph, but I don’t wait to see how it affects our pursuers. I run up the tunnel with panic clawing at me, because it feels far longer than it did before. The smell is also worse.
I come to a stop and clamp down as much as I can on my growing worry. I don’t recognize this part of the tunnel at all.
‘I’m not sure how long my barrier will hold them,’ I say, and rub my nose. It comes away bloody, because of course it does. Avoid high-stress situations: Dr Forster’s voice echoes in my ear and I sag a little. ‘Crap, I don’t know where we are at all.’