by Scott Duff
“May we?” he asked, gesturing at the astral images. I turned the images to face them and I explained each one in turn as we told our story. The gist of it was the truth, just liberally excised of facts. I totally left out any mention of Ethan’s current condition and, of course, any mention of the Pact. I was also pretty sure that Kieran and Cahill were relying on “the dumb teenager” to make their jobs easier. Harris was past that tactic, but he had the courtesy to wait until I finished to point that out.
“There are so many holes in that story you could grate Parmesan,” he said gruffly, tossing his suit jacket on the back of the couch next to me. He sat down sideways next to me so I obliged him with a direct confrontation, turning sideways, too.
“You guys got this?” I asked waving at the images. “We’ve been looking at them a while now…” They all nodded so I wiped the space clear. It was a huge relief for me, too. Keeping the forms lit and active actually took control and effort that I didn’t realize. I heard Shrank lightly land on the back of the couch behind me.
“The borderlands are huge,” Harris said. “In one day, you happen to find an unknown colony that has been overrun by the bugs that deliver highly dangerous magical curses. You then purge this realm of these bugs and save the only remaining person alive from there. You’ve removed about four hundred insects from the pool of potential delivery systems out of an unknown quantity. Well done. Now, where’s Ethan?”
“Ethan is unavailable for a time,” I answered keeping my face as expressionless as I could.
“Is he upstairs?” Harris pressed.
I sighed and looked at Peter plaintively. “I’m done,” I said with aggravation. He smiled at my pitiful look and switched places with me.
“I’m the last one who’ll talk to you, Mr. Harris,” Peter said a faint smile as he took my place. “Please don’t make me regret it.”
“Is Ethan upstairs?” he tried again.
Peter’s response was an expressionless, “Ethan is unavailable for a time.”
“How were these ‘bugs removed’?” he asked. Finally, he got a sense of a clue.
“K…” Peter paused a second. “Ehran and I hunted down some in the gardens, but Seth blew most of them up.”
“How did he do that?”
“He created several tornadoes and as they passed through the smaller end, he initialized the curses then overloaded their power cells. The few that remained after that he killed with lightning, sorta. ”
“Sorta?”
“It was really ley energy, not atmospheric lightning, but it was so generalized the bugs couldn’t home in on him to stamp the curse to him. It was rather nicely done.”
I’m pretty sure I blushed at the compliment. Harris looked over at me and started to ask me a question when Peter tapped his leg, saying, “He’s not talking to you, remember?”
I turned to Bob and said, “You guys may want to grab some chairs. Looks like this may take a while.”
Calhoun and Bob were both amused and annoyed at the situation and were trying hard not to show either emotion. Letting them move as Harris continued questioning Peter allowed them to better hide the annoyance. And it was going to be a long evening if Harris couldn’t find better questions. Besides, we had some of our own to ask.
John came in with a silver tray in one hand and a broom and a long-handled dustpan in the other, obviously intended for the chair I’d destroyed. I jumped up when I saw that, taking the broom from him. “I destroyed it,” I said. “The least I can do is sweep up the mess.” Poor John was mortified as I shooed him away. A pair of wingtips stepped into view as I swept up the last of the ash.
“What did you do?” asked Calhoun, smirking. He’d brought the chair from the desk over since most of the other chairs were large and cumbersome.
“I blew up his chair a little while ago,” I said lightly. “Gordon wanted to see one of the curses in action, so I obliged.” Calhoun’s snicker was cut short when a large book fell off the top shelf of the case behind, thunking him on the back of the head then landing on the floor.
“Gordon,” squeaked Shrank from the top of Cahill’s chair, “You may want to get that shelf looked at. That’s the second time today a book has fallen off.” From appearances, Shrank was cleaning his fingernails with his sword and had been for awhile. I turned quickly back to sweeping up ashes, trying to stifle my snickering, while Calhoun continued across the room, grumbling and rubbing the back of his head.
John lifted the lid off his tray and presented Cahill with a fresh steaming bowl of stew, much to Cahill’s delight. “I’ll have more supper for our guests shortly and coffee, tea and brandy momentarily,” John said.
“Thank you, John,” said Cahill, beaming at him as if he’d received manna from heaven. “And please thank Ronnie for me as well.”
“Not a chance, sir. I sneaked it out when she wasn’t looking,” said John, turning and coming to me for the broom and dustpan.
“Let me shorten this verbal dance you seem to want so badly, Harris,” said Kieran tersely. “Yes, there is a previous relationship between Lucian and me through my father. That’s why we went there in the first place. No, you don’t get to know that relationship nor do you get to know why Lucian’s group was there, or even who else may have been a member of said group. I believe that your government professes to believe in the right to privacy. These people were no more subversive than Felix or me. My one and only goal is to find my father. Seth and I are hunting down every lead we can to achieve that goal. Along the way, we are finding some very interesting and alarming information. We’ve made some friends and discovered some enemies. Felix is soundly on one side and you’re on another. You’re trying to change that. In honor of that, we’re throwing you a bone. You have to accept that there are things you just don’t get to know. Just as I’m sure, you have things I don’t get to know. Am I right?”
“Quite reasonable, yes,” said Harris. He wasn’t quite squirming but it was a close call. He took advantage of the change of focus, though. Harris asked Kieran, “Your father was rumored to heading to the Courts. Did you make it there?”
“No, we didn’t go to either Court,” said Kieran.
“So what makes you believe now that the Fae are preparing to war against us?” Harris asked.
“I don’t,” said Kieran. “The Fae are already at war with someone else. Someone who is doing the same thing to them that is being done to us: eroding our power base. From my father’s records, what little we have, and including Lucian’s group, over the past ten years close to five hundred master-class mages have been killed or died under mysterious circumstances, half that number in the last year. That’s just what I know about. And you’re mucking about making it easier on them.”
Harris didn’t seem convinced.
Cahill decided to have a go at him. “I think you’re thinking about this the wrong way, Cliff. Ehran isn’t saying that the elves are our friends, only that we share a common enemy. So far, that enemy has remained hidden and hidden well. We need to find that enemy, man, elf, or other, and show his face.”
“I can accept that,” said Harris after a moment. “So what do you want to do now?”
~ ~ ~
That discussion went on for several hours as Cahill and Harris decided who should be included in their “war council” and why. Kieran wouldn’t let us leave, saying that this was the political life and we had to get used to it, as boring as it was. We’d have to know these people sooner or later.
He did let me visit my mother during one extended break. She’d woken briefly shortly after I left that morning, even though the staff hadn’t expected her to. That’s twice just talking to her had helped. But she’d already gone to bed for the evening when I got there. I was both relieved and disappointed. I also spoke to Lucian’s doctor while I was there. She was a chipper woman who happily said Lucian’s physical problems were fairly quickly solved, but the mental issues surrounding the trauma he’d suffered would take quite a bit longer.
Pretty much what we expected to hear.
When I went back to Mother’s room, I found Lucian sitting in the ori-chair beside her bed. He’d screened off the room so that no one could see what he was doing, which really should have alarmed me but it didn’t. Once I stepped through the screen, I could tell instantly what he was doing: gently manipulating the Pact cache back to one piece. He was doing what I couldn’t.
“Hello, Seth,” he said without turning around. “Your father sure knew how to pick his women. Olivia is beautiful.”
“I’ve always thought so,” I said, coming over to stand beside him. “Is this going to help her?” I watched as he tugged gingerly on a strand of energy in her aura, shifting it into a position within the Pact spell.
“Most likely,” he said. “I’m surprised you hadn’t already done this.”
“I’ve only known about the Pact and magic for about a month now,” I said defensively. “Since Ehran came into my life, actually.”
He looked at me with a surprised expression. “So you were a null?” he asked.
“No,” I said. “We found evidence of me doing some things as a child, then my parents did something and hid that part of the world from me. We don’t know why yet.”
“And you haven’t wanted to press her quite yet. Understandable,” he said, nodding. “What happened to her?”
“She was tortured by a mad man for months,” I said. My voice was hollow from the memory of hearing her crash onto the table in front of Cahill.
“And what happened to him?” he asked in a whisper.
“I killed him.”
“I’m sure it was too clean a death,” he said, his voice breaking on the last word.
“Maybe,” I said. “But I’m not him.”
I looked down at Lucian, slumped in the chair trembling. He was a good man who’d been put through Hell and he really needed to rest and recuperate. He also needed to feel needed when the rest of his world was gone.
“Lucian, that’s enough for today,” I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. “You need to rest. There’s always tomorrow. My mother isn’t going anywhere for a while and neither are you. Once you’re up and about, you can decide what you want to do.”
Lucian snorted. “Want to do? There’s nothing for me to do. Everyone I know is gone. Am I to wander an empty world?”
“No,” I said, squatting beside his chair, putting my hand on his knee. “Look, Luke, I don’t want to diminish your loss in likening the two of us too strongly, but we are in somewhat similar situations. Seven months ago, I thought the same thing except I was in a world full of people that didn’t want me around and some were trying to kill me. I didn’t know what to do besides stand there and take it. When Ehran came into my life and offered to help, things changed. I changed. I had options that weren’t there before. A whole lot more trouble came with that, but I had something to strive for. And that got me my mother back. Along the way, I found some friends and discovered some enemies. You’re part of the way through that; you’ve got some friends, Luke. With time, we’ll find out who’s done this and make them pay.”
I’d stolen parts of that speech from Kieran, but I didn’t think he’d mind the plagiarism as long as it helped. Lucian’s eyes welled up in tears and his body shuddered in sobs. I reached up and pulled him into my shoulder as much as our positions would allow. I made some minor adjustments to his screening as I held him, blocking my mother from his grief and misery and allowing the staff to sense his presence. He needed to feel and work through the emotions, so I made no effort to manipulate him beyond simple human contact and consolation. I would have made a total muck up of it if I’d tried anything else anyway.
Someone came in behind us and set a bowl of hot water and some towels on the table then stepped out quietly. It was about ten minutes before Lucian finally pulled away to compose himself. I thought it was too soon but I didn’t argue. I wrung out a towel in the basin for him and gave him a box of tissues, slowly easing him out of Mother’s room. Lucian had deepened her sleep when he started his manipulations on the cache, but she was returning to normal levels and I didn’t want to wake her unnecessarily. He eased himself into the hallway while he dried his face with another towel and I followed him out.
“You know, if you think you can’t sleep, you could come with me and listen to the politicking I’m being forced to listen to,” I offered. “It’s just about put me to sleep, maybe it’ll help you.”
“Really?” he asked, looking up at me. He seemed really surprised. “You’re not going to keep me holed up someplace?”
“Why would we do that?”
“I’m the Librarian,” he said as if that were an answer that would split the heavens.
“And at the moment, I’m the library,” I responded. “I think we can do pretty much whatever we want at this point. Come on.”
We stopped in the front room long enough to tell the orderly where we were going then took off for downstairs. I coached Lucian on whom he’d meet and the facts we’d told each. It was actually quite easy since he knew the names and relationships already through the Pact’s network of spies and reports. John was folding a newspaper and standing when we entered the main hall. His timing was perfect as he met us at the door to the observatory.
“Beverages are available inside,” he said cordially as he opened to the door. “Would you care for anything to eat, Lucian?”
“Um, no, thank you for asking, though,” answered Lucian. He was startled by the question. I muttered thanks to John as we passed in, but Lucian stopped me just as the door shut behind us, whispering, “Everyone told me that this world was brusque and rude, but these people…”
“Oh,” I said, understanding his confusion. “A lot of it is. Trust me, it gets worse, but the Cahills are friends and are taking good care of us. They know how to be nice.”
Shrank was the first to notice us. He flew straight to my left shoulder, looked down at Lucian and said, “Hello.” I made introductions. Lucian was enchanted by the pixie, but the reverse was definitely not true. Shrank did not like Lucian in the least. Not that he was discourteous or mean, but I couldn’t get him to do or say anything with Lucian. He flew off to Kieran before I could get irritated at him. Too irritated, anyway.
Introductions to the Cahills and to Harris and his crew, while more formal, went without incident. Harris didn’t seem inclined to press Lucian with questions about his history. That could have been the specter of Kieran’s earlier words suppressing his natural suspicious nature. He could have just been tired, as they’d been debating names and places for hours, culling the list to a respectable ten outside of themselves.
However, after my return with Lucian, the meeting never quite returned to the topic at hand. The liquor was flowing, not unreasonably, just flowing and loosening tongues, with Peter and I abstaining. And Shrank. Shrank only moved when Kieran moved and only then to keep Lucian in sight. He’d gone invisible, so at least he wasn’t being obnoxious about it, but if he wasn’t sitting on Kieran’s shoulder I would’ve snatched him up by the nape of the neck by now. If Kieran had noticed, he wasn’t saying anything about it.
Once it was clear that no further business was to be done, Gordon excused himself for the night. Peter and I followed suit since we were accompanying him tomorrow. We expected Kieran to come too, but he merely accepted the responsibility of returning Lucian to the hospital suite. I let the aggravation show without remorse. He was supposed to explain a few things for us tonight and he was blowing us off, basically for a cocktail party. And he didn’t like three of the five people involved. Something wasn’t right here. Not a new feeling for me.
The three of us didn’t say much of anything as we went upstairs. It didn’t change much when Gordon bade us good night and peeled away down another hallway toward his room and us toward ours. Too much to process, I suppose. Peter gave me a quick hug good night and went to bed. I thought I’d be up for a while thinking about the day’s events, but as soon as my head hit t
he pillow, I was out.
Chapter 38
“Master Seth, rise and shine!” shrieked Shrank as he jumped on my arm repeatedly. “John is in the hall requesting you.” He flew out the door once I started groggily moving around the bed. I stuck my head out into the hall and yawned at John. The man had to own fifty dark blue suits.
“Good morning, sir,” he said, grinning, “Gordon asked me to wake you for breakfast. He’d like to leave in about an hour, if possible. Good morning, Peter.”
“Morning, John,” said Peter, breezing by me, ruffling my hair. “Haircut looks good, Seth. Shrank did a good job. See ya downstairs.”
My hand flew to my head, a bit shocked by the proclamation as Peter and John disappeared down the hall side by side. I ducked back into my room, shutting the door behind me and looking for a mirror. Once again the Fae had creeped me out by doing something when I wasn’t looking. I had to say something to Shrank about this and his behavior last night to boot. Peter was right, though—he did a good job, but cutting my hair in my sleep? Ew!
I was downstairs twenty minutes later with briefcase in hand. Though I wasn’t sure what we’d need, I packed up for contingencies: secured laptop, three international cellphones, a couple of thousand American, a couple of thousand Euros, an international credit card, my passport, and a light-weight jacket. As long as we could buy our way out of any problems, I guess we’d be okay.
“Good morning, Gordon,” I said, helping myself to some biscuits and ham and coffee and then sitting down next to him. “What’s our itinerary look like for the day?”
“Not too bad, really,” he said, moving his appointment book over so I could read it. “I could only arrange four appointments on short notice and Martin badgered me into adding the brother of a school mate. That should be a quick one. The first one’s in Dublin and on the way. We can go over the C.V.’s on the way. I blocked off three hours for Martin to show you ‘round the school. That sound right to you?”