Chapter Twenty-Seven
Before I can get back to Patrick, news comes that night. We move on the Gate at dawn. Dham and I have to report to the Underground to collect Trick and meet with the rest of the team by four a.m.
I collect Dham at three. I haven’t seen or heard sign of Cat, which makes me wonder when her team had to leave. I knock lightly on Dham’s door, and before my hand has dropped, the door opens. He’s there, dressed and ready, looking amazingly good for such an unholy hour. He smiles, sending my heart thudding in my chest, and grabs his backpack.
“Let’s go,” he says, swooping past me.
“Did you get any sleep?” I follow him out the front, making sure the door locks behind us.
“A little.” He turns to look at me, grinning at the suspicious look on my face. “Okay, not much.”
He sets a quick pace, so brisk that I have to trot to keep up at times. He seems almost eager for this. I wonder what he’s thinking. He seems different from the boy I picked up from New York. Thinking of New York reminds me of Peter. A shiver cuts through me.
“Hey Dham, have you seen Peter lately?”
He nods, not slowing his pace. “Yeah. He’s on Ryland’s team. Why?”
I feel only marginally better. If he’s going down into the church ruins, it’s unlikely he’d betray us, especially on Ryland’s team. I shake my head. Where did that thought come from? Peter may be a bit of a creeper, but he hadn’t done anything disloyal or treasonous. The mission must be messing with my head.
We hit the Underground and I lead us straight to Trick’s room. I throw off the bar and pick the lock with shaking hands, cursing when my fumbling makes me clumsy. I don’t know why I’m so nervous. I wrench open the door, asking Dham to keep a lookout. Then I step inside and look at Trick.
It's easier if I don't think of it as Patrick, even though it is Patrick's face that stares back at me. I ignore Trick's mocking greeting and stretch my blade up, scratching a line through the carefully painted Pentacle's outline, breaking the upper seal that keeps Trick in.
"What are you doing?" He doesn't sound frightened, more curious than anything else.
"You’re coming with me. I’ve got a job for you."
The familiar eyes narrow in an unfamiliar way. "What kind of job?"
I roll my eyes. We do not have time for this, but I grit my teeth and strive for patience. "I need you to come with us and help me.”
“I’m listening.” He’s calm as ever.
"Excellent. I'm going to cut your bonds and get you loose, but on one condition. You come with us where we're going and make no trouble for us along the way."
His eyes are wide. "Is that an order, mistress?"
"We don't have time for this." I stand just outside of the circle, arms crossed in front of my chest.
"I agree." His eyes are unreadable.
We stare at each other for a few moments. "Fine," I sigh. "That's an order."
"As my mistress wishes." He sits quietly in the chair.
"I'm coming in now to untie you." I wait a moment, gathering my courage, then step across the seal on the floor. I expect to feel a tingle or something, but I step across with no problem. Probably because I'm an ordinary human; if I'd been a daemon--spirit--whatever, I'd be caught like a fly in amber. I cut through the ropes binding his arms to the chair with my blade, then do the same for the ropes at his feet. I step back across the seal while he's getting up.
He stands and stares at me. I stare back, trying to get a read on him. This is a huge gamble on my part. He could just leave us here, or worse. But I have to try this. "Your word."
"I swear by the four elements, by wind and water, by fire and darkness, by earth and ruin, by battle and blood that I will obey you until such time as I am released." He doesn't sound happy about saying it, but it is the best I can do for right now.
"Right then." I drag my blade against the pentacle on the floor, severing the magical ties of completeness. Trick steps across, stretching to his full height with relief. "Come on."
The Iron Bells Page 34