Interesting People (Interesting Times #3)

by Matthew Storm

  “Some things never change,” Tyler said.

  “And we’re not going to have much of a place to hide,” Seven continued. “It’s just a bunch of standing stones on a hill. All the tourists go to Stonehenge, but there are dozens of sites like that all over the country.”

  “And this is the one that actually works,” Oliver said.

  “Well, it doesn’t do anything by itself,” Seven said. “But it’s kind of like lighting a match while you’re standing in a pool of gasoline. You get a nice big fire.”

  “What does fire have to do with this?” Jeffrey asked.

  “Nothing,” Oliver said. “It’s magic fire. But not really fire. That was just an analogy.”

  “I hate your analogies,” Jeffrey said.

  “It was Seven’s analogy!”

  “I don’t care.”

  Oliver considered his plan, which he’d have had to admit wasn’t much of a plan. They’d brought enough guns along for a small army, but he was counting on the idea that they didn’t actually need to beat Armitage; all they had to do was snatch up Artemis and get the hell out of there. They just needed to keep the magician busy while they did it. He wondered if maybe they should have brought explosives.

  Seven had reserved three rooms for them at a small hotel near Swindon. Oliver didn’t know the first thing about Swindon, but it did turn out to have a reasonable Indian restaurant that did take out. He took his food into his room, which was small, but pleasant enough. Jeffrey ate some rice off of a small paper plate while Oliver switched the television on. A moment later he heard the sound of rushing water in his ears and the television switched off. A pillar of flame appeared in front of it, and he wasn’t entirely surprised when Eris stepped forward. Tonight she wore a white toga with gold trim around the edges. Her hair, unusually, was entirely blonde and tied back in a simple bun.

  “Hello, brother,” she said.

  “Hello, Eris,” Oliver said.

  “Oh, boy,” Jeffrey said. “I’m not sure I can deal with this tonight.” He looked at Eris. “Did you know we met a dragon?”

  Eris smiled at him. “Go to sleep, little cat.” She waved her hand in the air as if she were gently brushing a fly away from her face. Jeffrey blinked twice and then rolled over, fast asleep.

  Oliver scratched the cat behind the ears. He was still breathing, but dead to the world. “Was that necessary?” he asked.

  “It was. I don’t have the time to play with him right now.”

  Oliver looked Eris up and down. “You seem unusually lucid tonight.”

  “You’re right.” She sighed and Oliver wondered for a moment if he heard pain in the sound of her breath. “This takes a lot of concentration. I can’t do it for long.”

  “No?”

  “It’s the boredom. Once it gets to me I’ll have to be something else, but I wanted to talk.”

  “Okay.” Oliver nodded. “What do you want to talk about?”

  “I have come to give you my advice.”

  “Really?” Oliver asked. “I could use some advice, actually. I really don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow.”

  “Very well. I will now give you my advice.” Eris cleared her throat. “Stop this nonsense. Forget Artemis. Go home. Not to San Francisco. Go to your home. You know how to get there now. When mother comes for you get on your knees and beg forgiveness so she will let you rejoin our family.”

  Oliver wasn’t sure what he’d expected her to say, but that hadn’t been it. “That’s it? That’s your advice?”

  “Yes.”

  “Say my name,” Oliver said. “My real name.”

  Eris bit her lip. She looked as if she was keeping a secret that she was bursting to tell someone. “I can’t.”

  “Mother would punish you?” Oliver asked. She nodded. “Are names really that powerful?”

  “I don’t want her to hear me,” Eris said. “I’m not supposed to be…” she stopped suddenly and shook her head. Her eyes seemed to lose their focus and she stared into space for a moment before turning back to him. “I’m running out of time. Even at my worst I’d know better than to challenge mother. How do you fight the night, Oliver? How do you beat it? You can’t. And she doesn’t like it when you try.”

  Oliver nodded. “Fair enough, I guess. But if you think I’m leaving here to run off and try to rejoin some lost pantheon…” He shook his head. “Forget it. I won’t abandon my friends. That’s never going to happen.”

  Eris grimaced. “By all the gods, that’s so you.” She sat down on the edge of the bed. “Your soul is immortal, but this,” she pinched his arm, “this is a man’s body. If it dies that little bit of you that’s trapped in there will go fly all around the universe until it finds a new body it likes. It took me ages to find you this time. The thought that I wouldn’t see you again for so long breaks my heart.”

  Oliver took her hand. “Has it occurred to you that you could help me tomorrow? With you on our side…”

  Eris stood up. Streaks of blue had begun appearing in her hair. “It’s forbidden. It’s not a small thing. I can get away with the small things. If I touch a big thing, especially a big thing you’re in the middle of, mother will know.”

  “You seem to get away with big things when you want to,” Oliver said. “Louis the Pious?”

  “Who?” Eris asked. She blinked. “Oh, I remember.” She smiled at him. “He was a twit. But he wasn’t a big thing.”

  “He was a king,” Oliver pointed out.

  “Tell me something,” Eris said. She winced and her blue hair seemed to explode off of her head, leaving a green Mohawk in its place. “When was Louis the Pious born? When did he rule? Just ballpark it for me.”

  Oliver thought about it. “Artemis said he ruled after Charlemagne,” he said. “So that would be…I guess the 1200’s?”

  “Not bad,” Eris said. “You’re only four hundred years off. So you tell me. Was he a big thing or a small thing?”

  “I guess you have a point.”

  Eris shimmered for a moment, nearly disappearing as if she was suddenly going out of focus. When Oliver could see her clearly again she was wearing brightly-colored clown pants and a motorcycle jacket. “Time to do something else,” she said. “Maybe I’ll take a vacation. I haven’t surfed in a long time. I like surfing.” She gave him a confused look. “What were we talking about? Oh, never mind.” She held out her hand to him. “Want to come with me?”

  It was tempting, but there really wasn’t any debate to be had. “No,” Oliver said.

  Eris nodded and put her hand down. “Good luck, brother.” An instant later she was engulfed by a pillar of fire, and then she was gone.

  Chapter 17

  Oliver didn’t sleep long or well. He found himself rising from bed often to stare through the window. He could see very little outside other than the dimly-lit street and a few closed shops. Swindon didn’t appear to have much nightlife, but to be fair he had no idea whether he was near any bars or pubs that might be open late. A beer didn’t sound like a bad idea, but he decided against roaming around trying to find something to do. It would serve him right if he got mugged and spent tomorrow in the hospital rather than saving Artemis.

  Jeffrey stirred as the sky changed from black to the dark blue that meant morning was on the way. “What did that crazy girl want?” he asked, not opening his eyes.

  “She wanted to know if we could let Waldo stay with us for a while,” Oliver said. “I guess he talks so much she’s finally gotten sick of him.”

  Jeffrey opened one eye. “Really?”

  “No.”

  “That’s good,” the cat said. He shut his eye. “I’ll kick that stupid bird’s ass if I see him.” A moment later he was back asleep.

  Oliver lay on the bed and attempted to doze off. He felt like he was nearly there when there was a knock on the door. “Buddy?” Tyler called.

  Oliver glanced at the bedside alarm clock. It was nearly eight in the morning. He wasn’t sure if he’d slept
and had a dream he’d been trying to get to sleep, or if he’d never slept at all. “We’ll be out in a minute.”

  Oliver checked his Beretta, and then the two spare magazines he’d brought along. If he needed more bullets than that, he figured he was screwed. He’d also put a .22 in an ankle holster. He only ever carried the backup gun as a last resort. It wasn’t likely to hurt any of the things they dealt with regularly very much, but it felt better than carrying a pocketknife, and it was easy to conceal. Those things were bonuses in his book.

  Seven met them in the hotel’s small restaurant. Tyler went to work on a traditional English breakfast of eggs, bacon, tomatoes, mushrooms, and a slice of what Oliver assumed was black pudding. On another day he might have been tempted to join the man, but the thought of eating that much right now just made him nauseous. He stuck to a scone with raspberry jam and a cup of tea. He’d also ordered a side plate of ham, which he cut into small pieces for Jeffrey to eat later.

  “Anyone come up with any great ideas for what we’re doing today?” Oliver asked.

  “No,” Seven said. “We do not appear to have many options.”

  “So we just go there and handle business,” Tyler said. He looked at Oliver. “You think we should wait until nightfall?”

  “No,” Oliver said. “Let’s at least go scout the place out. We can figure out the best escape route for when we grab Artemis.”

  “I figure we just run for the car,” Tyler said.

  “What if they’re between us and the car?”

  “Yeah.” Tyler nodded. “Good point.”

  Oliver finished his tea. “Do either of you need anything from your rooms?”

  “I left the shotgun in the car,” Tyler said. Seven just shook his head.

  “Good,” Oliver said. “I’m going to take this to Jeffrey. I’ll meet you outside.”

  “You’re not bringing him?” Tyler asked.

  “What’s he going to do besides get killed?” Oliver asked. He tapped the plate of ham with his index finger. “I’ll give him this and he’ll be in a food coma for the rest of the afternoon.”

  Seven nodded. “Probably a wise course of action,” he said. “Although perhaps not for whoever has to wash your bedsheets later.”

  Ten minutes later the three of them were in the rented car. To an outside observer they’d probably have looked like tourists out for a drive in the English countryside. Oliver wasn’t sure how he’d explain their weapons if they got pulled over and searched, but Seven was a careful driver and appeared to understand the local traffic laws. Oliver had quickly found he couldn’t convert kilometers to miles in his head, which made figuring out the speed limit difficult.

  In an hour they were far enough removed from civilization that the roads had become narrower and looked to be maintained much less frequently. Oliver found himself staring through the window at the English countryside and trying to think of a word to describe it. Beautiful didn’t seem like enough. Everything was green, with gentle hills and trees dotting the landscape. This might have been a nice place to come on a vacation, but he doubted he’d be eager to get back here anytime soon. It didn’t seem likely that he’d want to visit the place he’d fought an evil magician against overwhelming odds twice.

  “Everything looks so old,” Tyler said. “Did anything famous ever happen out here?”

  “It’s England,” Seven told him. “It’s hard to find a place where something famous didn’t happen.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Tyler nodded. “I guess that’s true.”

  It took another half an hour of driving to reach their destination. Oliver was surprised when Seven pulled the car to the side of the road and stopped. He looked around. There was farmland on one side of them and hills on the other. “Here?” he asked.

  “Here,” Seven said.

  “I don’t see any standing stones,” Tyler said.

  “It’s not a in national park,” Seven said. “I doubt the average person even knows it’s here.”

  “But there’s nothing here,” Oliver said.

  “Well, no,” Seven said. “We’re going to have to walk. There aren’t any roads that go there.”

  Oliver had been expecting them to stop in a parking lot, but apparently that wasn’t going to happen. “So we’re just going to go walking through the woods carrying guns and hope nobody notices us?”

  “Well…” Seven said. “I guess we’ll have to walk discreetly. But there’s really no reason anybody would see us. We’re heading into the hills. We can just say we’re hunting if we pass anyone.”

  “Do they hunt around here?” Tyler asked.

  “I have no idea. Maybe we should keep the guns out of sight.”

  Oliver sighed. Not for the first time, he wished he’d had more time to plan this operation. Arriving by helicopter probably would have been a much better idea. “Let’s just go,” he said. “We’ll try not to attract any attention.” He looked toward the range of hills that was their destination. “It looks pretty deserted around here, though. Maybe we won’t see anyone.”

  It took ten minutes to reach the base of the first hill, and twenty more to climb it. Oliver had nearly expected to find the standing stones up here, but instead he saw that this was only the first hill of what would likely be many. In front of him stretched more countryside and there were hills further in the distance. He wouldn’t have exactly called the area a forest. The trees weren’t dense enough and there were lots of open green fields. It was close enough, though.

  “There really aren’t any roads out here,” Tyler said.

  “No,” Seven said. “I’ve never seen the place, but I memorized a map earlier. We’ve got about two miles worth of hiking to do.” He looked at the sun, which was high in the sky. “Should be plenty of time to find it.”

  Tyler adjusted his shotgun, which he had strapped to his back in a harness. His .45 was on his hip. “Anything between us and there?”

  “Not really.”

  “Oh,” Tyler said. “So we’re not stopping for lunch, I guess.”

  “Would you really walk into a café armed like that?” Oliver asked. “I think you might get some attention.”

  Tyler shrugged. “I could have left the guns outside.”

  They set off walking again, with Seven taking the lead. It was a pleasant enough day, with hardly a cloud in the sky. Oliver assumed the temperature was in the 60’s, which was more or less the perfect temperature for what they were doing. His guns weren’t particularly heavy, and they hadn’t brought along any other gear. “I don’t know how we’re supposed to grab Artemis and run away,” he said as they walked. “Armitage and the Ripper will just chase us.”

  “That’s where we have a trump card,” Seven said. “Tyler can transform and carry her. He can run a lot faster than a human.”

  Oliver knew that from experience, Tyler having once picked him up while in werewolf form and sprinting through San Francisco carrying him over his shoulder. “That should work,” he said. “You and I will have to keep them busy, then, and I guess we’ll make a break for it when we can.”

  “You’re assuming I can still make the change,” Tyler said. “Armitage may have broken me with that sheepdog thing.”

  “Do you think that’s possible?” Oliver asked. It had never even occurred to him.

  “Well, a few years ago I didn’t think being a werewolf was possible,” Tyler said. “Now I don’t know what to think anymore.”

  After a while Oliver realized he’d lost count of how many hills they’d gone up and down. At this point he was more than lost, but Seven continued on without hesitation. If the man said he’d memorized a map earlier, there was little chance he was exaggerating. He’d have meant it literally. As they made yet another ascent Oliver noticed the trees were growing thicker and this area seemed colder than anywhere else they’d been today. There was moisture in the air, and before long he noticed they were entering some kind of mist. “I take it this means we’re getting close?” he asked. “This area see
ms different.”

  “Nearly there,” Seven said. “The nexus is at the top of this hill.”

  “Is it going to be this foggy up there?” Tyler asked.

  “I’m not the fog weatherman,” Oliver said. “Just keep your eyes open. One of them could be hiding out here waiting for us.”

  But they didn’t run into anyone as they climbed, and Oliver was grateful the ascent was easy enough that he could stay aware of the environment. It was definitely colder here, and while he wouldn’t have said it was dark, this area of forest seemed to be distinctly less well lit than the surrounding area. If he was a big watcher of horror movies and he’d been here on a trip to a cabin at the top of the hill, this would have been his cue to stop and turn right around.

  As they neared the summit the mist thinned out and Oliver could make out the landscape around them, even seeing into the distance for what appeared to be miles. The sky looked distinctly different to him now, though. Before it had been a beautiful clear blue, but now it appeared as if he was looking at it through a filmy screen of some kind. The sun was still out and high in the sky, but its brightness was muted somehow. “This place looks strange to me,” he said. There was an otherworldly quality to it all he couldn’t put his finger on.

  “I would assume your perception of this place is a little different because it’s a nexus,” Seven said. “Maybe it’s a forest for the trees kind of situation.”

  “What?” Tyler asked.

  “Maybe that was a bad analogy,” Seven said.

  “Maybe we need to quit it with the analogies,” Tyler said.

  “Look.” Oliver pointed ahead of them. “That has to be it.”

  Twenty yards away were the standing stones they’d come to find. Oliver wasn’t an archaeologist and couldn’t have said with any degree of accuracy how old they were, but he knew Stonehenge was thousands of years old, and the design of this structure looked somewhat similar. There were nine rectangular stones in all, each standing between ten and twelve feet high. They’d been arranged in a wide circle roughly the size of a large house. To Oliver they looked like nine grey monoliths that had gotten together to have a meeting. That was probably a silly idea, he thought, but he wasn’t sure how else he might have explained it to someone that asked.