Reunion

by Sean Stone

  “And he just let that go did he?” she asked fiercely.

  “Yes. I explained how I felt and he understood. He’s not the monster you think he is. He is capable of love.”

  “He murdered my father,” Clara said in disbelief at Jamal’s claim.

  “Your father betrayed him,” Jamal shot back.

  “You know all about betrayal, don’t you?” she quipped.

  “I never betrayed you.”

  “You slept with me under false pretences,” Clara said. Her anger was turning to sadness. And shame. She was ashamed that she’d been fooled by Jamal. Ashamed that she’d let him into her bed. He’d seen her at her most vulnerable and all the while he’d been reporting back to her enemy.

  “What false pretences? I slept with you because I love you. And you love me. There’s nothing else to it. Us having sex has nothing to do with Nick,” he said.

  “If you love me then help me,” Clara said.

  “Help you with what?”

  “Tell me how to kill Nick.”

  “If he’s at the bottom of the ocean then why do you need to kill him?” asked Jamal.

  “He might get free.”

  Jamal leaned back in his chair, thinking. “I love you, Clara. But I love Nick too.” Clara froze. His words were the exact words he’d spoken in her dream. Right before Nick had appeared behind her and killed her again. Was it possible that they were more than dreams?

  “What did you…” she couldn’t form a sentence. Her voice was shaking.

  “He’s been my friend for centuries. As much as it pains me to admit this, whatever bond we have is far outweighed by the bond I share with Nick. I’m sorry but that’s the truth,” Jamal continued.

  Clara stood up and turned away. For some reason, she was starting to cry. Was it what he’d said or the realisation that her dreams might actually be premonitions.

  “I can’t betray him, Clara. None of us can,” he continued.

  “Because you all have such a strong bond with him?” she spat the words like a bratty child.

  “Not all. But he offered everyone something. Something they could not get without him. If he has not earned their loyalty he’s bought it instead,” Jamal explained.

  “And what did he offer you?” she asked, holding back her tears as best she could. She didn’t know why it hurt so much that he had admitted he’d chosen Nick over her. It was something she already knew. Something she thought she’d come to terms with.

  “Nothing. He gave me what I wanted the moment I met him.”

  “He’s going to kill me, Jamal,” she said softly, almost pleading him to help her.

  Jamal sighed and looked at the door. “Let me help you. Clara, please. I can talk Nick round. Let me go and I can help you.”

  Clara stared right into his eyes and for a second she almost believed him. “You promised to help me before. Look what happened.”

  Clara turned and walked out of the room, knowing that she was never going to trust him again. She told Kegan to return Jamal to his cage and then took the elevator up to her office. Only once she was locked away upstairs did she finally allow herself to cry.

  1473 - Arabia

  Nick had travelled to some of the most supernatural places in the world since leaving Elysium but still had not found a single person to join him. The supernatural had been driven out of Arabia long ago. It actually had a very supernatural history but new religions brought new perspectives on things and the sorcerers were driven out. They hadn’t left Arabia, though. Some chose to live in secret, some chose to leave. The rest created their own village far from the main population. An entire village in which sorcerers could live openly. That was a village Nick wanted to see.

  When he arrived, he got a lot of strange looks from the locals but after a few months of him being here they soon grew accustomed to seeing him and when they realised he was no threat to them they left him alone. He rented a small home, little more than a cottage, on one of the richer man’s land. The man whose name was Hakim, invited Nick to eat with his family often. The man had a large family. A wife and four sons. They all got used to having Nick about and he got to know them quite well. He quickly came to despise all but one of them. The second oldest son was the only one born without magic and for that he was abused regularly by the rest. He was given the majority of the chores and treated hardly any better than the animals on the land. The boy was about fifteen and was weedy for his age. A result of malnutrition. The boy’s name was Jamal. Jamal was not even allowed to eat with the family. He was given a mat in the corner of the room where he had to eat like a dog. Not a single person in the entire village spoke up and yet Jamal’s living conditions were well known.

  One day when the family were all out Nick found Jamal sweeping the floor outside. Nick conjured up an apple and sat down to eat it. Jamal stopped sweeping and looked at him enviously. When Nick looked up he quickly looked down and resumed this work.

  “Is it the apple you are jealous of, or is it my magic?” Nick asked in perfect Arabic. He’d found learning new skills relatively easy since becoming a warlock. He didn’t know how having magic helped but he was sure that it did. Jamal continued to sweep. “You can answer me.”

  Jamal stopped sweeping and looked at him. “I am hungry for both,” he said.

  “Well then let me help you.” Nick held out his free hand and a second apple appeared. Jamal made no move to take it. “Go on,” he prompted. After a moment’s hesitation Jamal reached out and snatched the hand from his palm before he could change his mind.

  “Thank you,” he said, with a small bow of his head.

  “You’re welcome. Of course, I can’t give you magic,” Nick said.

  “I know. There is no way to become a sorcerer if you are born without magic,” Jamal said sadly. He was scoffing the apple greedily as if he was never going to see another.

  “Now that’s not true. I was born without magic,” Nick told him.

  “Really? How did you get it?” Jamal asked. He stopped eating and stared at Nick in wonder.

  “I took it from another. And you can to.”

  “Is that allowed?” Jamal asked, unsure.

  “Allowed by who? Your father? Almost certainly not. By me? Oh, yes. I encourage it. There are people who have magic but they do not deserve it. Those people should have their magic taken from them. Do you agree?” Nick asked. Of course, he had not taken his first bit of magic from someone undeserving of the gift. His first magical theft had been an accident. His subsequent ones had been planned. He’d targeted those who he considered to be undeserving of magic.

  “I’m not sure,” Jamal said nervously. Nick could tell that he wanted to say yes but he was too afraid.

  “Think it over.” Nick finished his apple. He tossed the core into the pile of dirt Jamal had swept away and then he stood up and left.

  Two days later Nick was reading a grimoire in his room when Asad, one of Hakim’s sons came to fetch him. Apparently, Hakim needed him urgently in the house. Nick did not care for being beckoned by lesser men but sometimes it served well to play a lesser man himself. When Nick arrived, he saw Hakim standing in the centre of the dining room hunched over furiously. Jamal was cowering in the corner. His face was black and bloody from the beating he had clearly just received. He was visibly shaking like a frightened cat. Nick clenched his jaw.

  “Nickolas, what have you been saying to my son?” Hakim demanded.

  “Which one?” Nick asked calmly.

  “The runt.” Hakim pointed at Jamal without even looking at him.

  Nick looked over at Jamal and smiled. It did nothing to calm the boy. “Nothing which he did not need to hear.”

  Asad gasped.

  “Jamal said you told him to take magic from those unworthy?” Hakim said. He was seething.

  “That is correct,” Nick said calmly. He was not in the least intimidated.

  Hakim’s face darkened. “You will leave my home at once and never return. You are not welcome her
e. Nor in this village.”

  “I mean to leave today. Not that it is for you to decide. The only question is wether or not Jamal will be coming with me.” Nick turned to Jamal. “What do you think, Jamal? Are you worthy of magic?”

  “How dare you!” Hakim said in outrage.

  Nick ignored him. “All you need do is kill your pathetic excuse for a father,” Nick said. “Do you think you can do that?” Jamal said nothing. He remained frozen like a gazelle before a lion.

  “Get out. Now,” Hakim said. “I will not tolerate this talk of warlockry.”

  “More than talk, Hakim. A warlock stands before you,” Nick said and watched Hakim react. At first he looked sick, then his sickness turned to more rage.

  “I will strike you down.” He raised his hand but Nick had him paralysed on the table in the blink of an eye. Asad ran at him and with a flick of Nick’s wrist, Asda’s neck snapped and he fell down dead.

  “I did that one for you,” Nick told Jamal. “Choose a knife. Kill your father. His magic will be yours.” Still Jamal did not move. “Unless of course you don’t want magic.”

  Jamal tore out of the room and headed into the room next door. Nick listened to him rummaging about and a moment later he returns with an ornate dagger. The hilt was gold with a swirling handle and the blade shimmering silver.

  “A family heirloom,” he said.

  “You put that back!” Hakim roared. Nick magically sealed his mouth. He took the dagger from Jamal and began preparing it for the warlock ritual. He had studied the ritual in great detail but this was the first time he had needed to perform it. His own dagger was already primed to absorb magic without the need of any preparation. Once prepared he handed the dagger back to Jamal.

  “It will be difficult but you know he deserves this,” Nick said. Hakim wiggled about silently but could not escape. Jamal approached him with the knife.

  “All I ever wanted was to be treated the same as my brothers,” Jamal said sadly. He was clearly still terrified of Hakim. Scared that he was going to break free and give him a lashing. “It wasn’t my fault I was born without magic.”

  Nick released Hakim’s mouth, intrigued so see what he said.

  “It wasn’t my fault either,” he replied quietly. Almost humbly. “All I wanted was a son worthy of calling himself my son. You… you’re a bitter disappointment. And you’re no son of mine. Now put my dagger down. Your hands are not worthy of touching it.”

  The hubris of Hakim was astounding. Even now he still believed that he had the upper hand.

  “You are not worthy of magic,” Jamal replied. Then he stabbed his father in the heart.

  Once the transfer was complete Nick knelt in front of his protégé. “How do you feel?”

  “I feel beautiful,” he said in response and Nick replied. “What he said though…” Jamal looked away saddened.

  “Worry not about what he said. His thoughts are irrelevant. Know that you are no disappointment to me, Jamal. You are the first who has not let me down.”

  Jamal smiled toothily and Nick felt a fondness in that moment that he had not felt in a long while. “Now, when the rest of your family return it is your choice whether or not they live or die. Then we shall leave this place. I will teach you everything you need to know about magic. And when you are older and the time is right I will make sure that you live for as long as I do,” Nick told him.

  Jamal did not disappoint Nick. When his family returned, he killed them all and consumed their magic. Then Nick led him outside into the village full of people who had turned a blind eye to the abuse Jamal had suffered. That afternoon the two of them slaughtered ever living person and claimed their magic. Only the children were allowed to live. Jamal refused to kill them because they had done no wrong. At Jamal’s request, Nick delivered them to a neighbouring village and then the two of them went on their way.

  16

  Jamal might not have realised it but he had given Clara something she could use. Each of the disciples had been promised something by Nick. If she could help provide whatever it was they wanted then maybe one of them would talk to her and she wouldn’t have to resort to torture. She only needed to turn one of them. She started with Wyatt but he remained perfectly silent throughout as did the others. There was only one disciple left who she hadn’t yet spoken to: Elias Barren. She had Kegan bring him to the interrogation room. She looked at her watch. It was three hours from crossover hour. Crossover hour was the time when the day shifters went home and the night shifters arrived. There was a half hour crossover period in which both the day and night shift agents would all be in the building. Clara’s time was running out. Sidney had given her until the end of her shift to get results. She didn’t know what would happen if she failed but she doubted it would be anything pleasant.

  “Elias Barren?” she said as she walked into the room and took her seat.

  “That’s me,” he replied in a New York accent. He was the only American in the group. He was short but well-built and had neatly cropped, short brown hair.

  “What can you tell me about your organisation?”

  “My organisation? You mean the Thirteen? Never been called an organisation before. Fancy.” He shrugged. “Not much to tell. We’re a bunch of warlocks. We do what we want when we want to do it. That’s all there is to it.”

  “Your associates told me that each of you have been promised something for your services?” she said. Maybe if he thought the others were talking he’d be more inclined to as well.

  “Is that so? The others tend to like Nick too,” he said.

  “But you don’t?”

  He shrugged. “Meh. He’s a means to an end.” Maybe this was going to be easier than she thought. If he wasn’t particularly fond of Nick then he might be willing to give up some information.

  “A means to what end?” she asked.

  He shook his head slowly and chuckled. “Shall we cut to the mustard? You’ve failed to get the others to talk so now you’re resorting to trying to make a deal? Am I right?” he said with an air of confidence. She got the impression that he had been some kind of a businessman before joining the Thirteen.

  “I’m open to considering a deal,” she replied carefully.

  “Hey, you brought me to the table. Tell me what you want,” he said.

  “I need answers. I’ve got too many questions and not enough time to find the answers,” she said honestly.

  “And if I give you the answers what will you give me?” Elias asked. He raised his eyebrows waiting for an answer.

  “What did Nick offer you?” she asked. Maybe she could give it to him. Probably not, though.

  “What Nick offered me no longer interests me. Not that you could give it to me anyhow.” He shook his head. “No. All I want now is my freedom.”

  “I can arrange for your release if you provide good information,” Clara said. She wasn’t sure if she could get him out but surely Sidney would agree to release one warlock in exchange for information that could put the rest down for good.

  Elias waved his hand dismissively. “Please, sweetheart. Don’t delude yourself into thinking you can hold us here indefinitely. You’ve put a time bomb in the cupboard. Just because the door’s locked doesn’t mean the bomb stopped ticking. No. I mean freedom from Nick.”

  “I thought you could leave if you wanted?” she asked. That was what one of the others had told her.

  “That’s what we were told. But you know what? None of his former disciples are still alive. No. The only way to leave really is to help him get his little lover back. But the thing, is I no longer think he can pull it off. I don’t want to serve him anymore. I just want to go back to living my life.”

  “So, what’s stopping you from leaving then? Why not run away somewhere he can’t find you?” said Clara.

  “We’re all linked. There is nowhere I can go that he won’t be able to find me. Only he can break that link.”

  “And there’s no other way?”

  “
One other way. If he dies.”

  “How can he be killed?”

  “That is the million-dollar question!” Elias shouted. “And yes, I do have the answer. Here’s my dilemma. If I kill Nick the others will kill me. If you kill Nick there’s a good chance Jamal will protect you. And Jamal has enough sway to stop the others from going for you. He’s Nick’s number two after all.”

  “You want me to kill Nick?” Clara asked. She suddenly recalled the vision of him standing before her. “Are you sorry, Clara?” She shivered and shook the thought away.

  “You got it. I’ll tell you how, hell, I’ll even help you. All you got to do is promise you’ll actually do it and promise that I get a free ticket. When all this is done, you let me walk away and you never hunt me down.” He sat back from the table and let her think his proposal over. So long as he stayed away from Cedarstone she could easily agree to his terms. She couldn’t see why Sidney would have an issue with it.

  “Nick isn’t an issue, though. I locked him in the sarcophagus and put it somewhere he can never be found,” she told him. Although, she had her doubts about that. She lived her doubts every night in her dreams.

  Elias shook his head. “First of all he can be found by any one of us. We’re connected, remember? Now, the night you locked us all up in here that connection broke. Snapped like a twig. It was gone. Dead. Here’s the spooky part. Earlier it flicked back on. Stronger than ever. So wherever you put Nick. Six feet under. Behind a cement wall. Bottom of the sea. He is awake. And he’s pissed. He will get out. He will come back. And he will kill you. Unless you have an ace in the hole. AKA me. So, you wanna wait for him to come back and snap your little neck, or do you wanna shake my hand and when he gets back you can snap his?”

  Clara said nothing for several moments. She was frozen. Nick was awake. The connection was back on. Did that mean he was free? Or was she being unnecessarily scared. He could teleport so if he was free then he’d be back already and she was surely the first person he’d kill. And she knew exactly how he’d kill her. She rubbed her chest without realising she was doing it.