Black On Black (Quentin Black Mystery #3)

by JC Andrijeski

  Shrugging at my unimpressed look, he gave me a wry smile. “Although you never did like doing what you were told, Miri. I should have remembered that. I might have done better if I’d ordered you to become involved with Black at the outset...”

  “Is that what Ian was?” I said, my voice unamused. “One among our race with ‘integrity and principle’? Because I think I’ll pass, Uncle Charles.”

  “Ian was...” Uncle Charles clicked his tongue with regret. “...A miscalculation.” At my incredulous snort, he gave me a sharper look. “For the record, niece, I never once told him to become romantically involved with you. He was there to act as your bodyguard, nothing more. I placed Ian with Tanaka to give him an excuse to look out for you. He developed a fixation on you all by himself... again, the unpredictability of seer affections being at issue.”

  He gave me a more apologetic look, shrugging with one hand.

  “Seers, I’m afraid, can be quite difficult to manage when it comes to their sexual inclinations. You may have discovered that for yourself by now, Miri.”

  I bit my lip, not answering him.

  Looking up as we descended a short flight of stairs, I realized we were back in the cavernous room with all of the marble pillars and statues.

  Given where we were, I assumed we’d be leaving Denon the same way we came in. But the two seers trailing behind us walked directly to the wall facing the courtyard instead. Only then did I notice three doors lived there, in that long wall––two smaller rectangular ones on either side of a much larger, arched doorway in the center.

  I watched a seer use keys to open the smaller door to our right.

  Once he had it open, he used more keys to open a series of iron barred gates on the other side. When he’d gotten through them all, the two burly seers carried Black through the open doorway and Uncle Charles and I followed.

  We descended the steps on the other side and then we were outside the structure completely, back in the wide courtyard with the three glass pyramids and the dormant fountains.

  Uncle Charles didn’t wait for the two seers to finish closing and locking the doors behind us, but began walking with me across the courtyard towards Richelieu.

  The two seers holding up Black were already heading in that direction.

  I could hear Black panting now. When I got closer to him with my mind, I got hit with a blast of physical pain. Fighting not to react, or maybe not to yell at him again, I forced my eyes off his back and looked at the illuminated glass pyramid instead.

  I was still looking there when the lights inside the wing behind us went out.

  “What will they do with Ian?” I said.

  Uncle Charles shrugged with the hand he didn’t have wrapped around my shoulder.

  “Ian Stone will be... dealt with.”

  I felt Black react to his words.

  “So you’re leaving him alive?” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I could tell Black hated the idea. “...After everything he’s done, all the people he’s killed. He just... walks? How is that safe for either me or Black?”

  I felt a plume of warmth off Black.

  “He’ll be dealt with,” Uncle Charles repeated, giving Black an annoyed glance. “Don’t worry about that, Miri. I know I’ve given you no reason to trust me on this point, but I give you my solemn vow... Ian won’t get anywhere near you or yours again. Certainly not the way he is now.”

  I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what that meant.

  Either way, his words didn’t reassure me––at all.

  Biting my lip, I looked around the deserted courtyard while I collected my thoughts. The light was brighter than it had been when we arrived. A new sheen of water darkened the stone, turning the surface into a mirror and reflecting the glow from the orange lamps.

  It must have rained.

  “You and I will have to visit here again sometime, Miri,” Uncle Charles remarked, glancing up at the dramatic face of the Richelieu building. “Humans really can be such curiously artistic creatures. They make unquestionably beautiful things when they put their minds to it––it is an interesting paradox of the species, given the small-mindedness of so many, and their propensity for destruction in all its forms.”

  I fought not to roll my eyes. “I guess you toned down that aspect of your personality when I was a kid,” I muttered.

  “Which aspect is that, my love?”

  “The racist asshole part,” I said, giving him a harder look.

  I felt another plume of heat off Black, even as he let out an involuntary laugh.

  I felt Uncle Charles notice both.

  He shot another annoyed look in Black’s direction.

  “Kindly ask your...” Again he seemed to stumble over the word. “...boyfriend... to keep his light to himself. You are still my niece, and I admit, his presumed proprietorship over you is... rankling.”

  I felt Black hear him.

  I felt him dim something about his presence with me too, but it did nothing to disguise the darker whisper of anger he exuded. Turning his head, he growled something at Uncle Charles in that other language. Charles rolled his eyes in an exaggerated fashion, then said something in response that definitely sounded like a threat.

  Whatever it was, Black didn’t answer.

  “Where are we going?” I bit my lip, fighting not to react to his blatant bullying of Black. “He shouldn’t have to walk this far... even with help. We could have walked a hundred steps and no one would have heard us.”

  Uncle Charles smiled indulgently, again making that soft clicking sound with his tongue. “Ah, you really don’t know very much about us yet. Do you, my Miri?”

  At my annoyed look, he held up a calming hand.

  “...I fully intend to explain. With seers, ‘overhearing’ is more about our sight than our ears.” He gazed out over the pyramid, his voice thoughtful. “..Seer sight cares nothing for walls. Or doors, my Miri. It cares only marginally about distance, and then only under certain circumstances. And yet, we still have ways of keeping things secret from one another, in spite of our abilities. One of those is to design special spaces we call ‘constructs.’”

  He glanced down at me, his green eyes studying mine for comprehension.

  “A construct could be described as a fenced-off portion of the psychic space, my dear. What we call ‘The Barrier.’” He glanced at Black’s back, then at me. “Is any of this familiar to you, child? I don’t want to overwhelm you with new terms and ideas all at once.”

  Despite my annoyance with him around Black, Uncle Charles calling me “child” didn’t really bother me––maybe because the way he said it sounded strangely formal. I got the sense it was another of those seer customs, like seers calling one another “brother” and “sister.” Either way, I blew it off.

  Thinking about what he’d just told me, I nodded slowly. “Some of it’s familiar. Black’s mentioned the Barrier.”

  I didn’t say anything about Black’s journals.

  Uncle Charles’ expression remained unreadable as his eyes flickered to Black. He seemed about to say one thing, then switched direction before he actually spoke.

  “Well, the short version is, I had my people set up a construct in Richelieu. Constructs have a spacial dimension as well as a nonphysical one, so generally are centered on a specific structure. Stone is ideal for this. Paris, thankfully, has that in abundance.”

  It occurred to me to wonder who he thought might be listening in exactly.

  For all I knew, he meant his own people, though.

  Details like that weren’t high on my list of priorities at the moment, especially since he’d just reminded me that he set Black up to be killed by Ian.

  “Not killed,” Uncle Charles corrected.

  “What then?” I said drily. “Were you just giving them some guy time to work out their differences?”

  “I knew you were on your way.”

  “So what? You say that like it’s some kind of explanation... or an excuse!”
/>   “Not an excuse, certainly. An explanation of sorts, yes.”

  I didn’t hide my anger, or the hostility that went through me like an electrical current. “And just what the fuck is that supposed to mean... uncle? Because I admit, your ‘explanation’ went a bit over my head, I’m afraid.”

  Pain moved tangibly over his expression. Seconds later, I felt it coming off him too, strongly enough that it tightened that fist in my chest all over again.

  I’d hurt his feelings. I could feel that, too.

  It infuriated me that I cared. After all this time, after everything he’d put me and Black through, it struck me as delusional in the extreme.

  “I know you have questions, ilya,” he said, softer. “About old things... as well as new ones. I’m also aware of your...” He glanced at Black, and a tangible curl of hostility came off him, the strongest one yet. “...of your condition at the moment. I won’t be able to satisfy you on all of those fronts tonight, my love. Possibly I won’t ever be able to satisfy you, or succeed in winning back your trust. But I intend to try.”

  He glanced around us, still holding my shoulder tightly with his arm.

  “I do not wish to broadcast some of these things where others might hear them, however. This is for your safety... as well as your partner’s, believe it or not. I may not be overly fond of him personally, but I fully intend to honor your connection to him, ilya.”

  Clenching my jaw, I glanced at Black.

  Reluctantly, after turning over my uncle’s words, I nodded.

  “Thank you,” he said, softer still.

  We walked the rest of the way to the outer doors of the Richelieu in silence.

  Instead of entering via the archway across from the pyramids, what I knew to be called the Richelieu Passage, we walked to the far western edge of the wing instead, where it nearly touched the road. We reached the corner of the building and the same ritual was repeated as had been done at the outer doors of Denon. The two seers pulled out an old-looking keychain and began unlocking the iron gates.

  Once they’d unlocked a second gate and the door that lived behind that, Uncle Charles and I filed in behind Black and his two escorts. I found myself in a cold, dark passageway, obviously meant only for security personnel and other staff.

  We walked down that cave-like corridor a short way, then the same seer pulled out a different set of keys. Opening a smallish door with a copper-colored key, he swung it inward.

  Light filled the featureless stone tunnel.

  Uncle Charles clicked his fingers, a sound that echoed sharply in the dark.

  The two seers holding Black brought him in ahead of us. I followed when Uncle Charles urged me to walk in front of him, ducking down to pass through the short door.

  Once inside, I stopped dead, looking up and around me in surprise.

  Sixteen

  TEST

  A LONG TABLE stood in front of us, decorated from above by three crystal chandeliers. Gold trim decorated the walls on all sides as well as the edges of the ceiling, which contained a painting of sky and clouds in the arched center panel.

  Images of stags and forest scenes decorated other murals between the gold patterns, and blood-red velvet curtains framed tall windows to my right. On my left I saw an observation walkway for when tourists moved through here and a fireplace-like cabinet stood next to where we emerged, maroon with gold detail and a clock face in the top. The table itself was empty but for a white tablecloth covered with giant silver and brass candlesticks. I couldn’t help noting that each of those looked heavy enough to kill someone with a single blow.

  I hoped I wouldn’t have to test that theory.

  I recognized the time period. Seeing the giant “N” symbol embroidered into the back of a throne-like chair at the other end of the room more or less verified my guess.

  I looked around in a kind of daze as they brought Black to one of the elaborate chairs around the table, spreading out a waterproof-looking cloth before they lowered his weight into what had to be a priceless antique. One of the seers made a series of elaborate hand-gestures to Black, communicating something to him.

  Whatever had been conveyed, Black nodded.

  The same seer began undressing him, unfastening the buckle of his blood-soaked belt and removing it before he began untying the shirt Black had used as a makeshift bandage. The seer moved efficiently, deftly, wholly businesslike. Seconds later, he was tugging the T-shirt Black still wore over his head, leaving him shirtless and shivering. I tore my eyes off him when I realized I was staring, looking back at Uncle Charles with gritted teeth.

  “So we’re inside this construct thing now?” I said. “We’re free to talk?”

  He held out his hands in a prayer-like gesture, his expression troubled. “Yes, Miriam. What would you like to know first?”

  I pointed at Black without looking at him. “Him,” I said. “Why did you take him? What the hell have you been doing to him? And why did you leave him there for Ian if you didn’t mean to kill either of us?”

  Uncle Charles, or “Lucky”––as I supposed I should think of him now––gave me an openly startled look. “I thought that would be obvious, given what you now know.”

  “Obvious?” I looked at Black in spite of myself, wincing as he did when the seer kneeling there began to clean the twin holes in his side, using some kind of disinfectant. “Well, it’s not,” I said, turning back to my uncle. “Why did you make him hunt Ian, when you obviously had the ability to capture Ian yourself? Why did you take him at all? What was that bullshit about making Black pay some kind of ‘debt’ to you for helping us in Bangkok... ?”

  Uncle Charles sighed, clicking softly.

  When he looked at me next, I knew I wouldn’t like what he was about to say.

  He took a half-step back, making a calming, wave-like gesture with one hand.

  “I needed to check him out, Miriam,” he said. “That’s all this was. He was never in real danger. Not from me.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Check him out? What does that mean? How?”

  “What do you mean, how?” Uncle Charles let out a humorless sound, aiming another of those graceful hand gestures at Black. “I have one person left in my bloodline family, Miriam... one. My brother is dead. His human wife, dead. My other niece, dead. I have no children of my own, and quite probably never will.”

  He aimed an overtly hostile look at Black.

  “I think I am protecting this person... whom I dearly love, even apart from my obligation to her as a carrier of my bloodline... when suddenly, the person I hired to watch over her tries to kill her. Weeks later, she is attacked, raped... abused. Why does all of this occur, I wonder?”

  Again the angry stare at Black.

  “...All of this occurs, Miriam, directly or indirectly, because my darling, beloved, most-favorite and only surviving niece is being actively courted by a seer I know absolutely nothing about. In fact, all I know about him, apart from the aforementioned tragedies he’s bestowed on my dearest Miriam in the space of less than six months...”

  Again that hard stare at Black.

  “...Is that he managed to amass a small fortune giving stock tips to humans. That he’d worked as a soldier and mercenary... again, for humans. Oh, and he’d refused repeated and quite well-meaning attempts over the years to reach out to him, to bring him into more direct contact with members of his own kind. He had no interest whatsoever in any offers I made to provide him with more than this petty, quasi-human life of his. He’s more or less thumbed his nose at the rest of his kind living on New Earth since he arrived...”

  I felt a whisper of anger off Black.

  As for me, I was staring at my uncle, my jaw hanging.

  “...I wasn’t about to let another... renegade... get my only surviving relative killed. Or indoctrinate her into his anti-seer ways. So when I realized you two were getting involved... and that it appeared to be mutual... I pulled him. I wanted to check him out for myself. More than that, I felt I neede
d to have a little talk with him. Elder to youth. Seer to seer. Male to male, if you prefer. A serious one, this time.”

  “You...” I stammered the words. “...Pulled him?”

  “Yes.”

  “You...” I glanced at Black, then stared at Uncle Charles. “You did this because of me?”

  “Yes! Yes! Of course, I did, Miri. Have you not been listening to me?”

  I continued to stare at him, feeling that sickness in my gut deepen. “You... tortured him. Molested him... raped him. Made him kill people. Sent him to a religious brainwashing camp. Stabbed him through the gut and left him for Ian to butcher... all so you could make sure he was a suitable candidate...”

  I met his gaze, unable to comprehend my own words.

  “...to date me?”

  “You’re damned right I did!” Uncle Charles smacked his palm on the back of the chair he stood over, his voice openly angry. “Miriam, I made a mistake letting Ian get too close to you. I made another letting him get involved with you without doing more extensive checks on his mental stability. I made a further mistake thinking Solonik would obey my explicit orders when I told him that under no circumstances was he to abduct you to blackmail Quentin Black. I wasn’t going to make that mistake again... not after Solonik. I’d had enough. I pulled Black so I could do a more thorough assessment of him...”

  “I’m a grown fucking woman!” I burst out, still in disbelief. “Who the hell do you think you are? You disappear from my life for twenty years, leaving me alone when I was a kid, when I actually needed you... only to show up and start beating the hell out of my new boyfriend out of some misguided sense of parental concern?”

  “Miriam, I was concerned for you––”

  “––And what exactly is it that you ‘assessed’ him on? His loyalty to the race? His loyalty to me? To you? To your dragon god? What?”

  “He cooperated,” Uncle Charles said, his voice steel. “He willingly cooperated, Miriam. Once he knew what I wanted, he agreed to my request.”

  I threw up my hands with a half-humorous laugh. “He cooperated? What choice did you give him?”