by Sarah Kleck
“Aha,” I said, wiggling my toes again. “Where are these points?”
He took my arm and stroked its inside from the shoulder to the elbow.
“Here, for example.” He pressed his thumb gently on a point near my elbow. The tingling immediately started again and spread over my entire arm. “The same goes for directed blows to the tip or side of the chin and the solar plexus.”
I frowned. “That’s it? I only need to hit that point to incapacitate my opponent or knock him unconscious? Why didn’t you teach me this before?”
“It’s not quite that simple. It takes a lot of practice.”
“Then let’s practice,” I said, determined. We only stopped when my whole body had been afflicted with a numb, tingling sensation that felt like a thousand ants climbing all over me.
“Okay, that’s enough,” I decided. “What time is it?”
“Just after seven,” Jared answered, coming over to me. He almost hadn’t been able to bear watching as Colin repeatedly sent me to the mat. But that was the deal. He could watch as long as he didn’t intervene.
“Already?” Colin asked. “I’ll go pick up Sally. See you at Berry’s.”
Berry’s was just as I remembered it. It hadn’t been long since I was last there, but it had seemed infinitely far away.
“There they are,” Jared said. He rolled his eyes and led me to the dark little wood table where Sally and Colin were making out.
“Why don’t they just do it on the table?” I whispered to Jared. He gave a cheery, unrestrained laugh, the kind I hadn’t heard from him in a while. It filled me with warmth, and I held his arm. “I love you!” I said. “It’s so wonderful to see you laugh.”
I gave him a long kiss, then pushed Sally’s shoulder. “So, what’s going on? Are you buying us a round or not?”
CHAPTER 17
“Jared.” I heard Colin’s voice and opened my eyes. It was the middle of the night, and we had been sleeping.
“Jared, wake up.” Colin shook Jared.
“What’s the matter?” Jared asked, sitting up.
“I think a damnatus followed us.”
“What?”
“When I took Sally home.”
“Are you sure?” Jared was suddenly wide awake. As was I.
“Not totally sure. But somebody followed us. I took Sally in and searched the area.”
“Did you see anybody?” I asked.
“No. But I’m sure someone was there. I felt it.”
Jared relaxed a little. “Colin, after what you saw in the fog, it’s normal that you’d be worried about Sally.”
“Don’t you believe me?”
“Of course I believe you. If you want, we can look for him right now.”
Colin reflected for a moment. “No,” he finally said. “I looked all over. He’s long gone by now.”
Jared reached for his phone on the nightstand. “I’ll call Ian,” he said. “He’ll watch Sally’s house.”
“No,” Colin said. “I’ll drive back to her and stay the night. I just . . . wanted to let you know.”
“Don’t worry,” I said, stroking Colin’s arm.
He nodded but still seemed a little rattled. “Time to find the witch,” he muttered. Nothing more needed to be said.
The next day, we devoted our afternoon to research. Colin, Jared, and I retreated to the relic room. Colin took Excalibur from the glass case and practiced with it while Jared and I buried ourselves in books searching for evidence of Morgana. I was curled up on the big leather couch, snuggled against Jared, when Irvin rushed in.
“We have a clue. She’s been seen.”
“Where?” Jared asked.
“The City,” Irvin said, out of breath. “Pack your things. We’re leaving.”
“Now?” Colin asked, lowering the mighty sword.
“Yes, now. How fast can you be ready?” Irvin’s probing look was directed at me. As if it’s a law of nature that women take longer to pack than men.
“Oh, twenty minutes, I’d guess,” was my answer.
Irvin raised his eyebrows. “Really?”
“Yes, really,” I said, somewhat sourly.
“But—” Colin protested. He only just had Sally back and was now supposed to leave her again.
“No buts,” Irvin shut him down. “Move it. Enid and Gareth will follow as soon as they can.”
I’d been ready for a while when Irvin showed up, exhausted, in the underground garage.
“Can we get started?” I joked.
He nodded, stored his travel bag in the boot, and slid into the passenger seat. Colin drove, and Jared and I cuddled in the back of the luxurious Mercedes E-Class.
The drive from Oxford to London took less than two hours. It led past open fields, rows of townhouses, and large factories. We needed another half hour to get to the city center.
Colin turned onto Wood Street and parked in front of the police station. Irvin announced us at the gate. A friendly blonde led us to an office with a silver sign on the door proclaiming “Detective Sergeant Adam Parker.”
Irvin asked us to wait in the hall when the door opened and he entered. A good-looking man in his midthirties with unusually dense dark hair greeted him. The detective wore a gray suit with a loose tie. He nodded to the rest of us as Irvin made a sweeping gesture toward us.
“Evelyn Lakewood, Jared Calmburry, Colin Sullivan—this is Adam Parker,” Irvin introduced us. “Detective sergeant with the City of London Police.”
“Lovely to meet you, Detective,” I said.
“My pleasure, Miss Lakewood.”
I gave him my hand. “Ah, a firm handshake,” he noticed with a smile. “I appreciate that in a woman.”
Jared’s face was impenetrable. When he shook Parker’s hand, Parker went a little red in the face and wobbled slightly.
Jared got straight to the point. “Irvin said you had something we should look at.” I couldn’t suppress my grin.
“Yes,” Detective Parker said in the same kind of tone my sister had used when she’d been on duty. “Follow me.”
Jared took my hand. I glanced at him sideways and raised an eyebrow.
“You have no idea what oscillations this guy had in his energy field when he saw you,” Jared whispered.
Parker led us into a small, windowless room where a presentation had been prepared. A still from a surveillance camera showed two men in a dark alley. The caption in the lower right noted that the scene had been recorded the previous night at 2:39 a.m.
“This should interest you,” Parker promised, touching “Play.” I stared intently at the monitor. A drug deal seemed to be going down. There was a bit of back and forth, but then something went wrong. The two started to argue. There was a tussle. A shining object suddenly gleamed on the black-and-white monitor. The image was strongly pixelated but still recognizable: a knife. It flashed up, then disappeared. The victim dropped to the ground. The knife’s handle cast a shadow as it stuck in his chest.
The first man hastily searched the dying man’s clothing. He pulled out two bags, then pocketed them before disappearing. He left the knife in the victim’s chest. Nothing happened for a while.
“What?” Colin said.
“Just wait,” Parker said, “and take a close look.”
A few seconds later, another figure arrived—masked and wearing a black hood, but judging from the body outline, it was a woman. A well-built one, too. She went to the injured man, kneeled beside him, and brushed her fingers over his face. Her mouth moved; she was speaking to him. He nodded. Then his mouth moved, too. The woman began to smile, and then she rose. She spread her arms and pointed her fingertips at the prone figure. His body jerked. The knife pushed out of his chest and fell to the ground. Then the man’s body stretched and bent at an impossible angle. It looked as if every bone in his body would break. He shook and twisted like a dying worm. Suddenly, he became rigid. The woman lowered her hands, then raised her right hand again, the palm facing upward. The man’s sti
ff body rose, floated, turned in the air, and was shaken again by a quaking tremble. It took a long time but became more intense, faster. I blinked. Was I seeing right? A second figure detached from the man’s body—was literally shaken from it. In size and stature, it was an exact copy of the man, with one difference. I wasn’t sure about the quality of the image, but the second figure seemed strangely transparent, like a shadow. The man’s body shook, wound, and bent, apparently suffering hellish pain, until the translucent shape completely detached.
Suddenly, it was over. There was complete calm in the scene on the monitor. The man floated, motionless, in the air, with the shadow copy beside him. The woman extended her fingertips, and the shadow moved toward her. Then she absorbed it—I was sure it was the man’s soul—with her fingertips. She tilted her head back and slowly lowered her hand. The man got on his feet, looked at the woman for a long moment, then kneeled before her. She spoke to him again. Then he spoke. Always in the same interval, as if he was repeating her words. As if he . . . was taking an oath. Satisfied, the woman nodded and walked away. The man rose and followed her.
Detective Parker pressed “Stop” and gave us a look as if to say: Well, I told you so.
The door opened, and the hall lights briefly blinded me. Gareth entered, with Enid and Ian close behind.
“Adam.” Gareth greeted the detective with a nod.
“Gareth.” Parker nodded back.
We watched the surveillance recording again.
“Who knows about this?” Gareth asked.
“Just me and Constable Bailey.”
“Do we have anything to worry about with him?”
Parker shook his head. “Bailey isn’t the kind of guy who worries about much.”
Colin and I exchanged a skeptical look.
“That means he’s a drinker,” Jared explained.
“Where did this happen?” Gareth stepped closer to the screen.
“Centre Point,” Parker answered.
“That’s a high rise at the center of the city, isn’t it?” Jared asked.
Parker nodded.
“Earnshaw Street,” Gareth determined after closely inspecting the still. “Right behind Centre Point.” He turned around. “A hotspot for drug deals. Full of surveillance cameras. Can you see where she went?”
“To the southwest, toward Hyde Park, then her trail disappears.”
“When was that?
“About four thirty this morning.”
Gareth looked at his watch. “Well over fifteen hours ago,” he said, then looked up. “Ian and I will look around Hyde Park.”
Ian, always short on words, briefly nodded from his guard-like position by the door.
“Adam, can you spare a man?”
Parker nodded. “Preferably Bailey, he already knows the tape.”
Gareth hesitated.
“He never drinks on duty,” Parker assured him.
“What are we going to do?” Colin asked.
“You’ll go to the safe house on Bishop’s Park Road. They’re already waiting for you there. I’ll contact you as soon as I know more.”
“Out of the question,” Jared answered, with determination in his voice. “Morgana’s nearby. I’m not going to sit around in some fat-cat mansion twiddling my thumbs.”
“I’ll check out the situation first,” Gareth interjected. “You shouldn’t expose yourself unnecessarily.”
“Expose myself to what, danger?” Jared said, as if he hadn’t understood right. “I’m the only one who can take her on! Your gun won’t do you much good against her.”
Enid intervened. “Jared, don’t you think it’d be better if Gareth first—”
Jared cut her off. “No. Evelyn, go with Enid to the safe house. Pick a nice room. We may be here for a few days.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but Jared leaned over and whispered, “You haven’t got your powers anymore, remember that. I wouldn’t be able to let you out of my sight for a second. You know what happened the last time you met her without magic. That can’t happen again.”
I opened my mouth again but closed it. He was right. Just then, I hated being a weak, useless human!
Jared kissed me.
“I’d like it if someone would accompany you. Colin?” Jared asked.
“Sorry, buddy. Not a chance. I’m not staying behind again and missing all the action.”
“I’d be happy to drive the two ladies,” Parker offered.
Jared’s countenance darkened. He gave the detective a long, warning look.
“Jared, he’s a member of Legatum Merlini,” Enid said. “We can trust him.”
“Very well,” Jared acquiesced “You’ll take Evelyn and Enid to the safe house. By the shortest route possible.”
CHAPTER 18
“This is one of the richest districts in London,” Detective Parker explained. He turned onto Fulham Palace Road and drove to Bishop’s Park Road. Mansions with old trees and the most modern security systems lined the broad street. Some were in the splendid Victorian style of the late nineteenth century, others in the plain elegance of modern glass and concrete. The owners lived behind their wrought-iron gates, close to London’s core, in the kind of seclusion only great wealth allows. Luxury rides lined both sides of the street. The parking spaces alone must have cost a fortune.
Parker turned into a driveway, stopped at a gate, and spoke to a security guard through an intercom. The gate swung open, and he drove up the driveway. Gray gravel crunched under the tires. The Victorian mansion was almost as large as the headquarters of Legatum Merlini, but in contrast to that medieval structure, this house appeared almost playful with all its stucco and countless ornaments. One side was completely overgrown with ivy, as if the house was a kind of sleeping beauty. As we got out of the car, we saw a familiar face. Judith McHallern was coming out the door. Why hadn’t anyone told me this was her house?
The widow appeared very fragile as she climbed down the stairs. She had tied her gray hair in an elegant bun, and her ankle-length dress somehow suited the house.
“Miss Lakewood,” she coldly greeted me, pressing my hand. “Enid.”
“Nice to see you, Judith.”
“Where are Jared and Colin?”
“With Gareth. They’re following a lead.”
Judith turned and went back into the house. She didn’t ask us in, but we nevertheless followed her into the large entrance hall. Dark wood lined the inside of the mansion. A dusty chandelier hung from the ceiling. Curved stairs with ornate rails led upward on both sides of the foyer.
“You’ll find your bedrooms up the stairs to the right,” Judith said, without looking at us. “You can pick a room there.”
Enid gave me an apologetic look for Judith’s rude behavior.
“You’re still holding it against me that I went to the police because of Karen?” Enid asked so loudly that the old lady couldn’t miss it.
Judith lifted her chin. “Loyalty was one of the finest virtues of Legatum Merlini in the good old days.”
“Loyalty?” I asked, riled. “What about my family?”
“Sometimes you have to do what you have to do.” Her answer was ice cold. She walked away without dignifying us with another glance.
“I beg your pardon?” I was about to go after her.
“Evelyn, let it be.” Enid put her hand on my shoulder. “There’s no point in arguing with her. She’s a stubborn old woman who’ll spend the rest of her days mourning the passing of the good old days.”
She lifted my travel bag and held it out to me. “Come on.” She nodded toward the staircase.
I hesitated, then followed Enid upstairs.
“Good-bye.”
Detective Parker. I’d completely forgotten about him. He was standing at the entrance.
“Good-bye,” I returned.
“Should you need something”—he took his wallet out, pulled a little white card from it, and gave it to me—“just ring me.”
I took his business c
ard. “Oh yes. Thank you.”
Parker winked, then turned and left.
I took the first room I came across. It had dark wood paneling, like the rest of the house, but was somewhat brightened by lighter materials. There was easily enough room for Jared and me in the huge canopy bed. I hoped we wouldn’t have to importune Judith’s hospitality for too long, so I didn’t unpack my bag. I was just placing my toiletry kit on the shelf of the adjoining bathroom when my phone rang.
“Evelyn,” Sally said, her voice unusually serious. “Can we meet? I really need to tell you something. And I can’t get hold of Colin. Do you know where he is?”
“Ah, yes,” I answered. “London.”
“What’s he doing in London?”
“We’re all in London, actually.”
“And nobody told me? Are you trying to get rid of me?” Her indignation was palpable.
“We’re not here for fun.”
She groaned. “Is this one of those ‘I’d love to talk about it but can’t’ things again? Grand!”
She was silent for a moment. I could visualize her sulking.
“When will you be back? It’s really important.”
“Soon.” At least, that’s what we hoped.
“And when is soon?”
“I’m not sure—maybe a few days.”
“Swell!”
“Can’t you tell me on the phone?”
“No!”
“I’ll ring you as soon as we’re back, okay?”
She didn’t say anything.
“And then everything will be like before, I promise.”
“Don’t promise something unless you can keep it.” Sally grumbled, then snorted. “Whatever. Call me when you’re back.”
“Will do.”
“Evelyn.”
“Yes?”
“Take care of yourself.”
Some time later, a knock on the door woke me.