Timeless Vision

by Regan Black

  “That is her.” Wayne had heard and seen enough.

  Tara resumed her work while he considered the best strategy. The building was a few blocks away. “We should look around this building while your cousin searches Manhattan.” He stood, eager to get moving. With any luck he would find a fight big enough to sap his energy and burn away his lust for Tara. He had no business crossing that line with her.

  “We?” She jumped to her feet. “Great! We’ll put a leash on Sterling and take a walk. It’ll be perfect.”

  “It isn’t safe for you to go with me.”

  “What?” She folded her arms over her chest. “I’ll say this one last time, mister. I’m not sitting this out.”

  “You’ve done excellent work. You have a name, a real lead for Nick and me to track down. If Collette is here or in Manhattan, we’ll roust her.”

  “Sit down,” Tara said, pointing at the chair beside hers. She sat down and pointed to the monitor again. “If I’m not going you’re not going. Let me show you what I mean.”

  He didn’t want to get closer to the warm scent of her skin or the tempting silky gloss of her hair. This was the most inappropriate time to have these needs and feelings clawing in his gut.

  As if he understood, Sterling wedged between them while the images on the screen flashed by too quickly for him to comprehend. “I’ve been searching for criminals sporting the black horse tattoo. There are two lowlifes with the cult tattoo who’ve been arrested in Brooklyn. The home address is Collette’s building.”

  “More reason to go now,” he said. “I can interrogate them about the witch.” Overlooking any source of information could prove disastrous.

  “This is how searches are supposed to go,” she said. “The building was a store at one point, later converted to offices and apartments. Ownership never changed from the original family. A matriarchal family who emigrated a year after we did.”

  “Following you,” he said murmured.

  “Yup.” She swiped something and the picture changed again.

  Wayne jerked back. “That woman looks remarkably like Morgana too.”

  “I agree.” She sighed and laced her fingers in her lap, her knuckles going white. “You can’t go in there alone. The dagger is my responsibility.”

  “You did not fail,” he said quietly, seeing the real problem lurking in her eyes. He knew failure firsthand. “As I said, any descendant of Morgana with terrible intentions would have tracked you down eventually.” He stroked the soft ears of his hound. “It is why I am here. The Brooklyn building gave her access to you and your family. We must hope Nick finds a hotel with direct access to a nexus of leylines in Manhattan.”

  “If she knows so much, Wayne, why didn’t she take me at the same time?”

  A vision filled his mind of the terrible things that could happen if the witch understood the full measure of the connection between O’Malley blood and the dagger. “We must be grateful they don’t know everything yet. It gives us a marginal advantage.”

  “Doing us no good without access to either her or the place she plans to execute the spell to release Morgana. Her idol. Her grandmother many times over.”

  His jaw clenched. “Your cousin will find her, thanks to you.” And he wanted to get out there and find any information about the cult.

  On a muttered curse, Tara closed her tablet again. “Don’t ask me to let you go out there alone.”

  He opened his mouth to deny her when her small phone rang.

  “Nick,” she explained, taking the call immediately.

  He watched her face, expecting dread or worry and seeing a sharp glint of excitement. He wondered if his eyes did that when he prepared for a fight he knew he could win. Impatient, he couldn’t decipher anything from her curt side of the conversation. “What did he find?” he demanded the moment she set the device on the table.

  “He was already on the right track. He’s holed up across the street from the hotel where Collette Fairchild has a permanent suite. He’s convinced it’s her center of operations. My mom is out of the way and he’s invited us - all three of us - to spring a trap and find our way inside.”

  Wayne was already out of his seat. “Let’s go.”

  She was laughing as she called for a car and found her shoes, coat, and gloves. “Eager for action?”

  “My patience has worn thin after 1500 years.”

  “Good.” She held open the back door and let Sterling out first. She set the physical locks and Wayne handled the magical wards. It wouldn’t do to give away their hideout to Collette. He draped a vague glamour over the three of them as they waited near the gate for the taxi.

  Moments later, the car arrived and he was able to relax and conserve his strength.

  Traffic posed no problem at this hour. Tara laid her palm over his knee to stop his tapping heel. “Nerves,” he said by way of apology.

  She smiled and leaned over, brushing his lips with a feather-light kiss. His tension drained away under her touch. Only his oldest sister had shown care for him despite the magic in his blood. He’d never dared expose his secrets to another woman of any class. His mother had taught him better than that.

  “Tara,” he began, waiting for her full attention. “When we are done with this, we need to talk.”

  Should this be his only time with such a remarkable, accepting woman, he wanted to make the most of it.

  ~*~

  Tara left her hand on Wayne’s knee, grateful for the cover of darkness. She kept telling herself the contact was meant to comfort him. She hoped he couldn’t tell how his much his warmth and unfailing strength affected her.

  A silly concern. He had some idea of her feeling since she kept kissing him. The memory of this morning had her fingers flexing into his thigh and she concentrated on easing back slowly to disguise the jolt of sexual need coursing through her.

  “What changes do you like best?” She rolled her eyes at the dumb question.

  “Bathrooms. I do miss the clear air of an open countryside,” he replied.

  A very Wayne answer, she thought, without dwelling on why she felt like she knew him. The dreams probably. Those whimsical adventures in her sleep had been based on homegrown fairy tales. Somewhere along the line her grandpa must have told her what he looked like and she’d filled in the details as she’d grown up. He was so much better in person.

  “Thank you for coming all this way to help us,” she whispered as the taxi crossed the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan.

  “We have yet to succeed.”

  “Like you, I believe.”

  He stared at her, his gaze intent and his lips parted to speak until something changed his mind. “This passage over the river is remarkable.”

  At the wistfulness in his voice, she studied the view, trying to see it as a tourist might. In his era the river would be a black swath reflecting the night sky rather than the man-made lights from the city. “I had dreams of kings and castles, knights and ladies, when I was little.” And long after, but she kept that to herself. “I used to love exploring the medieval gallery in any museum we visited.”

  “Maybe you can take me, should we have the time.” He covered her hand with his and aimed a meaningful glance at the cabbie.

  Let him listen, Tara thought. They weren’t saying anything too revealing or weird. “I think we’d both enjoy that.” If only she knew how long they’d have once the threat was neutralized. She couldn’t work up the courage to ask.

  “Back to business,” she said as she paid the fare when they reached the hotel where Nick was waiting. She joined the men and the dog on the sidewalk and brought up the rear of their small parade as Nick led them into a side entrance. In the elevator he filled them in on his latest theory.

  “It’s just what I thought. The hotel is basically a shelter for the cult.” He stopped talking when the elevator doors parted and led the way to the room he’d booked for his stake out in silence.

  “Aunt Siobhan was amazing,” he said when they were
in his room.

  “I bet.” Tara grinned at him. Her mother loved theater. “She went over the top didn’t she?”

  Nick chuckled. “Yeah, but it was great. She cracks me up.”

  “What is your plan?” Wayne interjected. “Can we lure Collette out of her hotel?”

  Nick shook his head. “Too risky. I’d rather trail one or two of them and see if we can make them talk.”

  “Nick,” Tara scolded. “What are you thinking?”

  “I didn’t say torture them, I said talk,” her cousin defended his idea. “Look.” He led them to a laptop set up on the desk. “I’m using the city camera overlooking the kitchen and service entrance. I’ve counted seven people with a black horse symbol that matches the tattoo on their coats or backpacks since I’ve been here. We’re in the right place.”

  “That’s not discreet at all.”

  “Have you seen anyone with the symbol leave?” Wayne asked.

  “Not yet, but they have to go home sometime.”

  Tara stifled her impatience. “So we grab a stranger on their way home in the middle of the night?”

  Her cousin ignored her. “They’re all coming from one subway access.”

  “Her lair, the heart of her power is underground,” Wayne said. “We can follow them from there.”

  “Agreed. Except they’ll spot you in a hurry.”

  “I can disguise myself.”

  “This close to her stronghold, she’ll sense any use of magic,” Nick said. “You’ll have to use a physical disguise.”

  “What about the dog and me?” Tara asked.

  “Together you should be fine.”

  “My hound cannot block his connection to me.”

  “That’s a risk I’ll take. We have to if we want more information on the cult itself. This could be our best chance to get inside.”

  Tara read Wayne’s expression clearly. He wanted to take action on the cult leader, not the general membership. Still, a solid lead on the woman or her habits could be invaluable. “Tell us what to do,” she said.

  It was nearly midnight when they were disguised and stationed around the subway station where the cult traffic seemed to be concentrated. Even at this hour in Manhattan the subway station did enough business that no one noticed them lurking. The plan was to identify someone from the cult, get them out of sight, ask a few questions, and get back to the brownstone with no one the wiser.

  It didn’t take long before Nick sent her a text alert about two cult members heading their way and she signaled Wayne through Sterling. She glanced up from her magazine just long enough to see Nick trailing two average-looking men down the steps. She and Sterling moved into their path, and the men instinctively shifted closer to Wayne’s hiding place near a service door.

  “Careful, lady. Get him away from us.”

  “Sorry. We’re practicing train skills.” She pointed to the service dog in training vest on Sterling. “He won’t hurt you.”

  She rambled on a bit more about the fictitious program while Nick moved into a cut-off position. One of the men reached into his jacket and Tara caught sight of a gun grip. She hoped Sterling caught it too and that Wayne understood what it was.

  “I said get that dog away from me,” one man said.

  “Gary, relax.” The other man put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. He gave Tara a gap-toothed half-smile. “He’s a cat guy.”

  “Good for him,” Tara muttered, giving them more space now that Nick was past them.

  Gary straightened his jacket, hiding the gun again. “Sorry, lady. It’s been a long day.”

  “I get it.” She barely moved, forcing them toward Wayne’s position to get the space they wanted. The two men from the cult ignored her, unaware they’d been cut off from any escape route other than jumping the tracks.

  Wayne, dressed as a homeless man, shuffled up behind the pair and asked for money. They started to brush him off and Tara was sure everything would be fine, until Gary’s eyes went wide and the other man’s jaw dropped.

  “Holy shit! Gary, grab him.”

  Wayne leaped back out of reach and the pair followed. Nick moved in behind the men as the warning bells sounded for the incoming train. Panicking, Gary pulled the gun and aimed it at Wayne. “You’re coming with us!”

  “Easy, men,” Wayne said, his hands flared wide.

  Tara watched, terrified as the simple plan went to hell. People around her were staring and raising cell phones and Wayne was in trouble. Gun versus sword was a lousy match up.

  Sterling must have agreed with her. He surged at the end of the leash, pulling it from Tara’s grasp. “Sterling! My dog!” She shouted, scrambling after him to keep up the ruse.

  Nick inserted himself between the scuffle and the rest of the people waiting on the platform. “What’s the trouble here?”

  “Mind your business,” the gap-toothed man said. “Go on!” The pair forced Wayne back from the platform into the alcove and the service door, exactly where Nick wanted them to be. Neither of them saw Sterling bearing down on them.

  The dog slammed into the gap-toothed man, knocking him into Gary. Startled, Gary pulled the trigger and the gun fired. One gunshot, then two more blasted across the platform. The screams rising behind Tara were swallowed by the squeal of brakes on the approaching train.

  Tara skidded to a stop, staring helplessly at the tangle of bodies - four men and a dog - fighting for control of the handgun. Gary scrambled free, gun in hand, and shoved her aside as he raced for the tracks, squeezing into the gap and out of sight as the train arrived.

  She had no idea if he made it or where he thought to go as Nick grabbed her hand and dragged her into the service room. She leaned against the locked door, looking for any sign of gunshot wounds. Satisfied, neither Wayne nor Nick were injured, she stepped up to her cousin. “You blocked the transit cameras,” she murmured, “but there were a few cell phones recording.”

  “We’ll have to deal with it,” Nick grumbled. As Wayne held the gap-toothed man at arm’s length, Nick used zip ties to cuff his wrists behind his back and then secure him to the chain link fencing protecting the service equipment. “Give me a name,” Nick demanded.

  “Gawain. How’s that one?” He sneered in Wayne’s direction.

  Nick shoved the man hard in the shoulder. “Give me your name.”

  “I’m not alone. They’ll come for me any minute.”

  “They won’t find you,” Wayne said, his voice settled into a deep, threatening baritone. “I can make sure of it.”

  Beside him, Sterling growled.

  Tara sensed the magic in the air as Wayne called his power to the forefront. The blue of his eyes glowed deeply as they had in her office. Here though, his jaw clenched in a struggle she blamed on their underground location. With no way to help him, she just said a prayer.

  Their prisoner grinned. “That will only bring them faster. It’s like a beacon. Thank you.”

  “Tell us about Collette,” Nick began.

  The man paled and fought at his restraints. “Shut up,” he screeched. “You can’t know that name. You’re not worthy to speak it.”

  Tara nudged her cousin out of the way, deciding they might make faster progress with a friendlier approach. “We don’t want to hurt you, or any of your friends. She took something from me. I just want it back.”

  The room rumbled, ceiling, walls and floors, as if a giant had picked it up and given it a shake. “That’s her,” Gap-tooth cried with a wild smile. “You’re all dead.”

  Tara knew better than to blame the quaking room on another incoming train. As confirmation she saw Wayne and Sterling were braced for battle.

  The door rattled against the lock and an eerie light seeped in between the door and the frame.

  “Behind me,” Wayne shouted, shrugging off his tattered disguise and drawing his sword.

  “Told you,” Gap-tooth sneered as the lock broke.

  Collette entered on a gust of power as if she’d rehearsed every
step on a movie set. Her cloak swelled and fell in an invisible breeze and her palms glowed with that same strange light. She personified intimidation, a skill she must have inherited along with her sharp, fey features and wild black hair.

  Tara resisted Nick’s attempt to drag out her of the way. She didn’t know what she could do, she only knew she wouldn’t let Wayne and Sterling handle this bitch alone. Not after she’d hurt him so badly after the fight in the pub.

  She stepped forward, drawing the witch’s full attention. “Give me back my dagger.”

  “Oh, but darling, I’m not finished with it yet.”

  “You’re a thief,” Tara accused. “Worse, you’re a coward forcing others to steal for you.”

  Collette’s eyes flashed, her lips moved voicelessly, and Wayne swung his sword in an arc, blocking whatever spell the witch aimed at Tara.

  “Give up your quest,” Wayne said, advancing. “You will fail now that I’ve found you.”

  “Have you found me, then? I think the reverse is far more accurate” Her gaze darted to the man thrashing to get free of his restraints. “What have you told them?”

  “Nothing, my lady.”

  “Good boy.” Her attention returned to Wayne. “It’s a shame I must destroy you before we have a chance to catch up.”

  “You are Collette Fairchild,” Wayne declared in a low voice filled with power. He swung the broadsword in a circle over his head. “You are playing with a darkness you cannot fathom.”

  “I fathom just fine, my gallant foe.” Collette raised a hand to toss another spell at Wayne. Sterling and Tara moved as one to brace him, protect him, and the witch’s blast shifted at the last second to a different target.

  The gap-toothed man smiled blissfully as Collette’s spell killed him.

  “His blood is on your hands, Miss O’Malley. Name calling is deadly in my world.”

  Wayne lunged to attack as Collette retreated in a cloud of smoke. Sterling blocked him while Nick and Tara grabbed at his arms.