Splitsville (Rise of the Discordant Book 2)

by Christina McMullen

  Harry, at least, had good news. His contact in Rome had managed to procure a corpus vessel, but the transfers and paperwork would take a week at the very least. After that, it was a matter of transport. There was no protective spell known to mystic-kind that would allow a preserved human heart to pass through the postal system unnoticed. Instead, a network would need to be set up to get the relic out of the Cycle and into the hands of Arkady, my contact in Laboratory Q outside the Cycle. Once Arkady had the vessel; it could easily be passed to me through the trans-cyclical pocket in my jacket.

  There was still the issue of what would happen to Gary Marsden once Harry completed the exorcism. If the damage to his brain was still strong enough to hold back the maddening information, then it might be possible for the witches to place a physical ward inside his head that would keep the information hidden. As Myrna predicted, Harry was not pleased with the concept of working directly with the coven. Personally, I was more worried about the girls playing brain surgeon on the poor man and had to rationalize that there really wasn’t much they could do to further damage what was already broken.

  That there was nothing more I could do about the wraith was frustrating, but in some ways I was grateful that it left me the ability to focus my energies on ridding Blackbird of the nuisance Discordant that were continually drawn to the place. Granted, the wraith was half the reason that the vampires and pixies were drawn to the high school, but they were easily dispatched with the teens’ cooperation.

  To be honest, I was surprised that Nai had been willing to cooperate after the inexcusable disaster with the vampire that she tried to dispatch on her own. But after that day, most of the texts that warned of Discordant in the area came from her, not Jem. Admittedly, that was likely because she was skipping class and going out of her way to look for them, but at least she wasn’t trying to kill them any longer.

  Yet I still had worries. Her typically confrontational personality turned an about face and she’d recently taken to long periods of pensive silence, punctuated only by the sounds of her scribbling in the notebook she now carried everywhere. We were no closer to knowing what it was that made her and her brother different, but it was getting harder to ignore. Not only could Nai do things that only I should have been able to do, but her brother was showing an aptitude for mystic magic and protective wards that neither Seth nor I could begin to fathom. We were both resigned to the fact that the Creator had its reasons for sending the teens to us, even if said reasons were beyond our level of comprehension.

  I had a nagging suspicion that Seth knew something that he wasn’t telling me. On the day that he’d gone to meet with Gary, he returned with a subdued Nai in tow. Knowing that her classes would not be over for another hour, I’d expressed concern that the child was going to end up repeating the year for all the school she missed.

  “It was for the best,” Seth had informed me cryptically after she’d gone up to her room. “You were right on both counts.”

  “And Nai?”

  “Knows you were lying to her. I… She still doesn’t know the whole story, but I impressed upon her the notion that going after the wraith would put Mr. Marsden’s life in danger.”

  “And you think that would stop her?” I asked, incredulous.

  “Of course not,” Seth said wryly, “which is why I told her that putting his life in danger would warrant the immediate retirement of her soul without trial. She’s dangerous, Desmond, but she’s not stupid.”

  Dangerous, but not stupid. Seth’s words echoed in my head as I watched Nai get ready to spend yet another night hanging out at Louie’s diner, albeit alone. It was Friday night and Jem had already left for the football game and the party that would be taking place afterwards. When he asked my permission, I had revealed my ignorance of high school social hierarchies when I assumed that Jem was asking permission for both he and his sister to attend. I should have known that Nai’s less than effervescent personality would not be winning her many friends, but I was still taken aback.

  For her part, Nai seemed unfazed by the slight. If anything, she seemed to act as if social functions were more of a hassle than they were worth and I can’t say that I did not agree with her. Still, I would have felt a whole lot better about allowing Jem to go if I knew his sister would be with him. That there would likely be drinking and maybe even drugs was the least of my concerns. I knew Jem well enough to know that he wouldn’t do anything dangerous. My worry was that a group of emotionally unstable and possibly inebriated teenagers was going to attract Discordant to the area. Jem promised to contact me if anything more dangerous than a pixie showed up. I didn’t want to embarrass him or make him think that I didn’t trust him by hanging around the area, but I did make a mental note to have one of the witches snoop on the area every so often.

  “It’s almost ten,” I reminded Nai as she came through the kitchen, wearing one boot while carrying the other and whispering to herself.

  “Huh? Oh! I was just looking for my other boot,” she said. “You don’t have to wait for me. I highly doubt I’m going to get mugged.”

  “No, I’d definitely be more worried for the unfortunate who tried to attack you,” I joked. “But seriously, Nai, I’d feel better if you weren’t wandering alone tonight. Weekends are crazy. You know that.”

  “I know,” she said with a scowl. “I just… never mind.” Her eyes flashed with anger for a moment before softening. “Thanks, I guess,” she said with an embarrassed smile. “I’m ready. Let’s go.”

  In my own way, I did feel bad that I couldn’t trust Nai enough to leave her to make it to the diner on her own. I couldn’t feel too bad because my lack of trust stemmed from her history of untrustworthy behavior and she knew it. But as we walked in silence, it was clear that something was bothering her, despite the fact that she vehemently denied this. After making her promise that she would contact Seth or me if she saw anything out of the ordinary, I left Nai at Louie’s and continued to the Five Penny.

  “Get ready. There must be a full moon,” Seth warned me as I sat down at the bar.

  “Oh? I didn’t see any werewolves.”

  “Figurative full moon, Desmond,” he said, shaking his head at me. “I haven’t sensed any Discordant, but give it time. There are a lot of unbalanced emotions flying around.”

  I took a deep breath and concentrated. Seth was right; the overall mood was just off balance enough that I too could sense the difference. “What do you think is happening?”

  “I’ve got a theory,” Donna said as she filled a glass with ice. “Gin and tonic, hold the gin?” she asked with a wink.

  “Yes, thank you,” I replied with a grateful smile. “What’s your theory?”

  “I think your wraith is on the move. I’m not sure if it’s significant, but today is the autumnal equinox.”

  “A load of pagan hooey ain’t gonna mean much to a demon.”

  “Harry?” I turned around at the sound of the caretaker’s voice. I was surprised to see him. He didn’t like crowds and wasn’t the biggest fan of the Five Penny after he found out that I had a demon and a witch tending bar.

  “I’ve got bad news.” His shoulders slumped as he looked around nervously. “The item we were waiting for isn’t coming.”

  “What happened?” I asked, trying not to let the news anger me.

  “A dragon in Nepal happened. We lost several dozen souls before they could destroy the creature.”

  “Fair enough,” I sighed. I couldn’t even be mad. A dragon was even more destructive than an angel and so far, we’d suffered no casualties. Still, the setback meant we no longer had any plan for dealing with the wraith.

  “But the witch is on to something,” he grudgingly admitted. “Something’s on the loose out there and I think it’s the demon.”

  “I sent a message to Betty and Louise,” said Donna.

  “I’d already asked them to keep an eye on the party spot,” I said. “I’m going to have to go make the rounds. And someone is going t
o have to check on Nai,” I added.

  “I’ll take care of that,” Seth said, slipping on his jacket.

  “I’ll go with you,” Harry offered.

  I made sure that Donna and Bogie had everything they needed to keep the bar safe and was about to leave myself when another unusual visitor walked through the door. Myrna Rose strode up to the bar, looking grave.

  “Oh good, you’re here,” she said, sliding into the seat next to mine and snapping her fingers to get Bogie’s attention.

  “Young lady, I’m gonna need to see some ID,” he said with a wink.

  “Sorry kiddo, I left the stone tablet it’s chiseled on back home,” she quipped. “Get me a vodka and water, hold the water.” Apparently, along with her lead foot, Donna had inherited her sense of humor from her mother as well.

  “Nice, I’ll have to remember that one,” Bogie said as he poured the drink.

  “Since when does my mother drink?” Donna asked as she pulled herself away from a group of college guys who were doing their best to impress her.

  “Since when does my daughter use her boobs to make tips?” Myrna shot back with a shaded look at Donna’s low cut top.

  “What boobs? I’m not the Rose woman who used to be a stripper,” Donna countered, causing Bogie to nearly overflow Myrna’s glass. To be fair, I was just as surprised by this unsolicited bit of information.

  “Exotic dancer,” Myrna corrected her. “We had class back then.”

  “Okay, I’m a steppin’ outta this one!” I had to agree with the runt.

  “Look, never mind any of that,” said Myrna as she fished her phone out of her handbag. “I did a little research on these Guardians of yours. Were you aware that their father was Professor Norman Nye?”

  “Nye? Nai Nye? Yer kiddin’ me right?” Bogie asked. “Sheesh, that poor kid never had a chance, did she?”

  For the second time in as many minutes, I found myself in agreement with Bogie. But unfortunate names aside, this was big news.

  “Of this you are certain?”

  Dr. Norman Nye was credited with the discovery of the philosopher’s tomb, a torture chamber uncovered in an ancient Greek city. A deep pit dug into the earth with smooth walls, it had been rigged to slowly drive its inhabitants mad. It was not long after Dr. Nye’s discovery that the chamber caught Order’s attention. It was a rift. Those trapped inside the tomb went mad not because of the ingenious rigging of the trap, but rather because they were presented with the Ultimate Truth, the forbidden knowledge of Order. Agents were sent to close the rift before the excavation team was able to further explore the site. In fact, the team that had been sent in had been puzzled by the fact that Dr. Nye had managed to uncover this secret without going mad himself.

  “Positive,” Myrna nodded. “It would appear that soon after the discovery of the tomb, Dr. Nye was married and became a father. Colleagues note that after the birth of his children, he took a long break from archeology, focusing instead on the study of historical texts. I don’t doubt his children had much to do with this decision, but not for the typical reasons.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “You said that you thought Gary Marsden wasn’t possessed when he returned to Blackbird, correct?”

  “Definitely,” Bogie chimed in. “I’da recognized if he was.”

  “I’ve got the feeling he wasn’t the first explorer to be spared madness by demonic possession.”

  “Wait. You can’t be saying what I think you’re saying.” It seemed as if Myrna was suggesting that the wraith possessing Gary Marsden had previously possessed Dr. Norman Nye. There were just a few too many coincidences for me to believe.

  “Talk to Harry,” she said. “There’s a reason their soul was split and a reason why it failed. In fact, I don’t think their supposedly accidental death before their eighteenth birthday was a coincidence either.”

  “Wait a minute,” I said, remembering how upset Nai had been when we altered her identification. “Equinox… Dammit!”

  Just as I started to put two and two together, my phone lit up with multiple incoming messages. The message from Seth said that Nai was not at Louie’s. Betty’s message said that Gary was headed toward the riverside party spot. But Jem’s message, garbled nonsense that contained no discernable words, was the one that worried me the most.

  Chapter 11

  An Old Family Recipe

  It was hard enough trying to save all the lost students without my sister’s help, but in the last week, it became next to impossible. Never before had I been so relieved when the final bell rang. I planned to run home and jump in the shower, stuffing all of the thoughts that were weighing on me into the back of my mind. It was Wednesday, which meant that Donna would be coming over to give me a cooking lesson.

  “Yo, Hawthorne!”

  I turned around and saw Gordon flagging me down. Gordon was one of the star players on the football team and one of the more popular students. I slowed down and allowed him to catch up. “What’s up?”

  “I just wanted to let you know about the party after the game on Friday.”

  “Oh?” I perked up. I hadn’t been able to try out for football, but when the guys on the team found out I used to play, they were cool with me and I’d gone to every home game since, but I hadn’t been invited to any parties yet. Back home, there was a party after pretty much every game.

  “Yeah, it’s just this thing we do. Some of the guys weren’t sure if you’d be cool, considering. But I said you’d keep it on the DL.”

  “Considering?” I asked, unsure what he was talking about.

  “Your sister, dude. She’s kind of a bitch.”

  I hadn’t expected that. I mean, okay, he was right and if Nai had been there, she would have probably agreed and had something nasty to say about Gordon, but still, it made me angry that he would talk about my sister that way.

  “Wow. Really?”

  “I mean, no offense,” he went on, holding up his hands. “You’re cool, but she’s not invited, okay?”

  “Yeah, that’s cool,” I said, giving him a smile and taking the flyer with the details and the location. As I walked past a garbage can, I balled up the flyer and was about to throw it away when I stopped and stuffed it into my pocket. I knew I was going to go. That is, if Desmond let me. I was popular and Nai wasn’t. This wasn’t any different than it had been before. I went to all kinds of parties that Nai was never invited to. This one would be no different, except that it was likely that Discordant would probably show up, so in a way, I didn’t have a choice.

  So why did I feel bad?

  I got home with only a few minutes to spare, so I ran up to my room and quickly changed out of the grubby clothes I’d been wearing all day. I was just checking to see if my hair still looked okay when Nai’s face appeared from around the doorway, smirking as she silently laughed at me.

  “Something I can help you with?” I asked, even though I knew she was just there to give me a hard time.

  “You might as well just wear a shirt that says desperate horny teenager for the good it will do you.”

  “Whatever,” I mumbled as I pushed past her. “I’m not trying to impress anyone.”

  “Mm-hm…”

  I made it down stairs just as the doorbell rang, grumbling under my breath. Just because I wanted to look my best didn’t mean anything. Still, my smile sagged a bit when I opened the door and found not Donna, but Bogie standing on the front porch.

  “Gee kid, don’t look so happy to see me,” he said, pushing a bag from Blackbird’s fanciest grocery store into my hands.

  “What? I’m not…”

  “Donna’s on her way,” he assured me with a slap on the back. “We was thinkin’ you did such a good job that we’d show you some of the fancier stuff.” He punctuated his comments with a wink. Donna had been using the cooking lessons to teach me a bit about magical spells, so I wasn’t sure if Bogie was talking about food or if the wink meant he was there to teach me some Di
scordant magic. To be honest, the idea scared me, but I was also curious.

  According to Harry, I was weaker than Nai, which bothered me a lot more than I would ever let on. Nai had all of the skills of Order, not just those we were allowed to use as Guardians. I didn’t, but I could do all of the protective spells that Donna had taught me. Nai couldn’t. If Bogie was going to teach me something even crazier, I was all for it. Imagine the look on Nai’s face when she finds out I can do Discordant magic.

  “Kid, are yous even listenin’ to me?”

  “Huh?” I snapped out of my daydream and noticed that I was still standing in the hallway, carrying the bag that Bogie had thrown at me. “Sorry, what?”

  “I said, go empty the bag and get out a large pot. We’re cooking up an old family recipe as soon as Red gets here with the meat.”

  “Meat?”

  As if on cue, Donna came in through the back door and threw down a brown paper wrapped parcel that made a loud squelching noise as it hit the counter.

  “Rabbit,” she said, nodding at the paper parcel.

  “Um…” I hoped my face wasn’t as green as I felt. “I thought you were a vegetarian.”

  “I can’t eat the flesh of an animal I haven’t given proper respect to. I gave each of these babies their proper respects before I-”

  “No, that’s okay!” I said, cutting her off before she described how she had killed the rabbits. I’d be lying if I said that Donna wasn’t a little weird and perhaps more than a little creepy. “Maybe we could make something less, um… dead?”

  “And let the meat go to waste? Hell no!” she said before smothering a yawn. “Sorry, I haven’t been getting enough sleep.”

  “Dreams?” Bogie asked, giving her a weird look that she returned with a scowl.

  “That’s not even funny.” To me she added, “My mother was impregnated by an incubus in her sleep. So was her mother and so on down our family line for ages. I’m the thirteenth Nyx, so I was destined to give birth to the one who would enslave humanity or some other nonsense, but I broke the curse by having sex.”