“I’m sorry, I’m on official business and need to get on. Besides you’re one of the last people I’d like to spend any time with,” as Zhing finished speaking she started for the exit.
The man took a seat; confident and bold, he now spoke with a slightly lower tone. “As you like. Though if you wish to know the answer to your question, Leceth’s recent exploits, you might have to forego your disdain of me; please take a seat and accept my most gracious offer of a hot beverage.”
Zhing paused in the doorway; her natural instinct compelled her to ignore his taunt but the need to complete her mission overrode the feeling in her gut. Turning on her heels and heading back to the chair she gracefully sat down and without showing any outward sign of conflict or contrition she said, “I’ll have a large cappuccino with an extra shot, please.”
Admiring her form the man simply acknowledged the request and made his way to the counter. Zhing stared after him taking in his physical appearance; it sickened her as much as the thought of who he was. Anyone who was anyone in the Order had been briefed on his file, how to recognise him in the flesh and of his dangerous nature and opportunistic tendencies which he so often flaunted. ‘Mr. Hinkley’ was the name he was known by. The Order suspected this wasn’t his real name but it was the alias he had been known by for several centuries. Zhing knew he was old, she remembered in a briefing that records on him went as far back as the origins of the Order itself, or that’s what Saresh had suggested at that time.
As her eyes fixed on him she could hear the voices of teachers and mentors in her head lecturing her about Mr. Hinkley. The voice of Peter played loudly: ‘Mr. Hinkley is of unknown origin. His allegiances are never revealed and his motives for supplying information are often dubious at best. Any dealings with him should be carried out by high-ranking Order officials only. Mr. Hinkley should be treated with extreme caution.’ Zhing inwardly smirked at how clear her recollection of Peter’s words were, considering she, like most at the London office, tried very hard to ignore everything Peter said.
“The girl will bring our drinks over in a second,” Mr. Hinkley said as he wobbled back to his seat. “You look troubled. Don’t worry my dear; I’m simply here to help,” Mr. Hinkley uttered as he slumped back into the chair.
The words did little to dispel her fears; in fact she found his need to reassure her of his ‘good’ intentions extremely unnerving.
“I’m not troubled, thank you. So you say you want to help. How?” Zhing’s tone was her usual, direct and professional.
The sly grin again stretched across his face and it irked Zhing even more. His hands, which had rested together on his lap, rose to his face with his two index fingers touching his lip. It appeared like he was holding back his words, determining exactly what information he was about to reveal.
“Well, I have some time-sensitive information that may provide you with the answers you seek,” his speech seemed even more high-pitched. Zhing winced uncontrollably at his voice and wondered how he knew what she wanted.
“Answers that I seek?” she asked, giving a fake confused expression.
“Yes. Answers to the Order’s recent situation. I’m aware of many things. You shouldn’t be surprised. You must be aware of who I am and what I do,” he replied smugly.
“Of course I know who you are. We have met before, briefly. I am just curious to know what you think it is that I’m after exactly. And how you think you know it?” Zhing’s tone was harsh and as she finished speaking a young girl placed two cups of hot coffee in front of the pair.
Mr. Hinkley waited for the server to leave, following her with his eyes, before he responded. “I see you wish me to make the first move. I admire your suspicious nature. I know you are looking into Leceth, I know you are trying to ascertain his recent whereabouts. And I’m also of the belief that you want to find out if he has anything to do with the recent passing of a Mr. Oliver McKenzie. Is that accurate enough?” Again his response appeared smug.
Zhing didn’t immediately respond but picked up her cup and took a bitter sip of coffee; with the porcelain still at her lips she gave him a small and subtle nod to indicate that he was, indeed, spot on.
“So now we have the initial mistrust out of the way, we can move on to actual business,” as he spoke he grabbed his own coffee and attempted to sit back, but his large chubby body prevented him from looking completely comfortable in the chair.
“So what information do you have? And what do you want in return?” Zhing asked.
“I do like your directness. It is an unusual trait in the individuals I often deal with. You, my lovely, are a breath of fresh air,” his compliment felt like anything but to Zhing; she wondered if he could make her feel any more revolted than she felt right now. Before she could say anything he burst back into speech. “Right, answering your questions; I am aware of a situation that, as I said before, is time-sensitive; although this shouldn’t be a problem for you. From this most fortunate of circumstances you will find yourself in possession of what I believe to be a set of very illuminating documents. I shall generously give you details so you can take advantage of this opportunity. As for what I want in return for all this, well, I want nothing; I’m giving you this information for free!” he winked at Zhing as he finished talking.
Zhing was taken aback by Mr. Hinkley’s offer. She had never before heard of him giving anything up for nothing in return. This all seemed out of place and this made her wary of his motives. “For free? Seriously, you want nothing in return? You are willing to give me this information freely to me now?”
“Yes. I can understand your suspicion. You are, no doubt, questioning my motives. I did contemplate asking for something in return, merely to ease your anxieties. But contrary to popular belief, I am not one for playing games. I wish to freely give you this information.”
Zhing eyed him up and down. She didn’t trust him, everything she had been told about him made her feel uneasy at this offering. “Really!?” she exclaimed. “You expect me to believe that? That I am not about to walk into some kind of trap?”
Mr. Hinkley paused for a brief second; his mind pondered on whether to divulge his underlying motive. He was an extremely secretive individual and being honest about his actions was something he rarely did; it was how he had survived so long. “It is no trap. The information I shall pass to you is genuine,” he stopped mid-flow as he composed his sentence. “As you are aware I am a dealer in information, exchanging knowledge and wisdom for more knowledge and wisdom. It’s my business to know what is happening in this world. If the truth be known, I believe Leceth is up to something significant, devious. He is an extremely old vampire and his lineage can be traced back to the Old Ones. If he is up to something that would compel him to risk open warfare with the Order, then that is something I need to be aware of and the truth is I am completely unaware of his deeds, which I don’t like. Me telling you a snippet of information now will encourage you to, no doubt, investigate further. And investigations lead to more people knowing, which in turn leads to a greater chance of me finding out which, at the end of the day, is my business. The more people know about Leceth and his plans, the more likely I’ll hear about it. So you see the information isn’t entirely free,” as he finished speaking he took a long sip of his coffee nearly drinking it all in one long gulp.
Zhing listened to his words and for an instant she believed what he was saying; in the midst of the secrets and misdirection she knew there was an element of truth to what he was saying. “Okay, say I believe you. There is no guarantee you will hear about what I find out. So why tell me?”
“I will tell you because the information is worthless to anyone but you. There is no guarantee, you’re right about that. But it’s worth the risk to me,” as he finished he polished off the last dregs of his coffee.
“So what do you know?” Zhing asked pushing her doubts to one side.
“Good. What I tell you now is true. Whether you act upon it or not is your own business. You
are aware of a man called Reginald Salt?” He stopped, waiting for Zhing to acknowledge that she had heard of Leceth’s number-one human accomplice, his most trusted mortal and the director of his day-to-day operations. “Good, well have you heard of a Mr. David Rumble?” Again he paused.
Zhing looked upwards briefly, searching her mind, “No.”
“Well I didn’t think you would have. Well, David is one of Reginald’s personal assistants. And like so many young career-minded men, he has been promoted far beyond his talents should allow. For this we must be grateful. For Mr. Rumble has been struggling for months to carry out his duties and, against protocol, he has been taking some of his work home.”
“Work?” she whispered inquisitively.
“Yes. He has taken many documents home from time to time; he currently has quite the substantial load at his home. Coincidently Reginald has requested, in the last few days, that several of these documents, stored away at his residence, be destroyed. Obviously, Reginald is unaware of their whereabouts and David has no doubt informed his manager that he has completed their destruction; but these condemned papers are very much intact and still at his home.” Taking a small scrap of paper from his jacket pocket he passed it to Zhing before continuing, “That is his address. I suspect he will destroy them soon, likely tonight when he gets home; hence the time-sensitive warning. You will need to acquire them before he destroys them. It shouldn’t be a problem for a Phoenix. He has two vampire guards, but again, no problem for a Phoenix.”
Zhing stared at the address; her mind raced with delight and anticipation. She agreed with Mr. Hinkley’s assessment that getting these documents should not be too difficult, not for her. Thinking about the potential breakthrough she had been given she wondered whether she should thank him but decided not to. As much as she was delighted at the information she couldn’t help the feeling of mistrust and suspicion. If it proved to be accurate and rewarding then she would owe him her thanks, but before this could be determined he was simply a guy with a dubious history who had told her some lies and that was well within his nature.
“Well if it is that time-sensitive, I should be going,” she said sipping her half-filled cup and standing to her feet.
“You are an extremely driven young lady. Straight to business. Well I shall wish you good luck. And if you do find out anything please feel free to let me know.” He knew she wouldn’t but he wanted to say it.
“We shall see,” she replied this time sounding smug herself. Zhing left the café before any more communication could possibly take place between the pair of them. Mr. Hinkley watched Zhing through the glass as she made her way down the street. He picked up her coffee and finished it off. Placing it down he felt a sense of achievement and joy. He had passed on everything he had intended to and not a mote more. “Foolish child. Soon, my brothers; soon you will be dead,” as he muttered to himself his smile returned, this time taking on a very sinister twist.
…
That night Zhing was upon the large house in the middle of the French capital for which she had been given the address. With bright fierce sapphire blue flashes the two vampires guarding the home had been easily subdued. Moments later Zhing was quickly inside disabling all manner of surveillance systems and overcoming simple magical barriers. The energy produced by a Phoenix was often used to smash through weak protective mystical fields; Zhings powers were well suited for this evening’s task.
Her way through the house wasn’t silent or stealthy but she had cut the power and fortunately had not bumped into any of the family members that lived there. The house was large but not extravagant; making her way through the hallways she was being guided by the voice of her Phoenix.
Entering a room which the voice inside her seemed to be indicating she should go in to, she found herself in what appeared to be a study. The room was illuminated in blue light as a floating sapphire globe had appeared over Zhing’s shoulder as she closed the door behind her. She made her way straight for the desk that had mountains of paper and files upon it. Quickly she began to look through it, collating sheets of paper that looked important. Then her eyes fell upon a red folder marked ‘for the shredder’ scribbled on the front. Picking it up she flicked it open and began to examine the contents.
Zhing smiled as her eyes widened taking in what she had in her hands. It was her lucky break! It was enough information to draw her investigation to an end. In less than a minute Zhing was outside the house heading for the French offices of the Order of Light with the file and documents in hand.
It had been easy; she thanked Mr. Hinkley in her mind as the details he provided were more than accurate. She wondered how he had come by the information but now it didn’t matter. She was thankful that she would soon be leaving France and getting back to London. The last few months had been busy and even Zhing, with her almost fanatical work ethic, wanted a bit of time off.
…
Zhing walked into Jonathon’s office without knocking and threw piles of scruffy paper on his desk. Jonathon lurched up from his arms where he was resting. “Zhing?” he said as he blinked his vision clear.
“You might want to have a look at that!” Zhing said as she pointed to the papers she had shoved under his nose. Jonathon picked up the scraps and began to read.
It took him a few minutes to fall upon something that made his entire face light up. “This is good, this is really good!” he said looking up.
Zhing’s response was to step forward and to rummage through the file; taking one of the few white sheets out she placed it on top of the pile. “This one is good too,” she said through a large smile.
Jonathon’s eyes grew bigger and he looked more animated than he had for months. “Well done.” He placed the sheets down on the table. “You have done an excellent job, again. You’re probably shattered. Go and get some rest.”
Zhing stepped back, gave a nod and was gone before he could even say goodbye.
Jonathon picked up his phone. “Can you come to my office, I need you to write something up?” He put the phone down quickly then lifted the receiver again and made another call. “Peter? Meeting in one hour – main conference room. Bring staff. Okay, bye,” he dropped the phone back on the hook.
He picked it up again, as Julia walked in, “Type this up for me please,” he said as he handed her some papers, “Oh, can you do ten copies of the original as well please?”
He did not wait for her reply; he was soon speaking on the phone again.
“Get me the Council. I want to speak with Leceth!”
…
- Chapter Nineteen -
Friends Forever
It had been nearly four weeks since Kristian had made the decision to ask Jess to leave. He knew at the time that it was the right decision to make but if there was anyone in the world he would have wanted at his bedside over the last couple of weeks, it would have been her.
He was glad that Kieran had agreed to come along with him that day to meet Jess at Waterloo train station. Over the last few weeks, he had felt closer to him, their friendship had grown; regrown to what it once was.
Kieran glanced at his Mickey Mouse watch, “What time is she coming in?” he asked.
Kristian looked at Kieran’s watch and smirked. “Ten past. She should be here any minute now,” Kristian looked up at the announcement board, scanning for details that he might have overlooked. Her journey had already disappeared which was an indicator that her train had already arrived. “She must be here,” Kristian uttered.
The two young men made their way towards the exit turnstiles as hordes of people began making their own way down the platform, heading towards them.
In the midst of them all Kristian spotted the long dark locks of Jess’s beautiful hair. He could not make out her face yet, as there were too many people surrounding her, but he just knew that it was her.
“There she is,” Kristian said, pointing into the masses.
As Kieran glanced over, she emerged from the crowd and
exited the turnstile; she looked over and spotted her friend and her face lit up. Kristian pushed his way towards her and they hugged emphatically, lasting some time Kieran felt awkward as he stood patiently at their side. Jess pulled away from Kristian, looking up at Kieran.
“Oh, you must be Kieran. Pleasure to meet you. Again!” Jess did not wait for a reply and immediately hugged Kieran as well. “I hope you’ve been taking care of my Kris!” she laughed as she rubbed his blonde hair playfully.
“Of course. We all have,” came Kieran’s response.
At Jess’s request, the three of them made their way to one of the station’s cafés. Kristian took her heavy bag and slung it over his shoulder. “How are your parents?” Kristian asked. “Is your dad still off from work?”
“No,” Jess responded. “He went back last week; his hand is all better now. I’m not even sure there was anything wrong with it to be honest; he’s a bit of a hypochondriac really, for an old soldier.”
They found a nice round table in a utilitarian station café; the two of them sat themselves down whilst Kieran took their orders and headed for the till.
“So, are things all better now? Does this mean I can come out of hiding?” said a serious Jess. She leaned back in her chair and nodded in Kieran’s direction. “He’s cute!”
“Hmm, I guess,” Kristian said absently, “and, I’m not too sure what you should do really; I’m told things aren’t as serious as they were. It feels like things are better now, but I still want you to be extra careful.”
Jess raised her left eyebrow as she spoke. “That’s not very comforting, you know?”
The Phoenix Chronicles: Alone in the Light (Book ONE) Page 29