Quinn grinned. “I might have to put that to the test sometime. So what else did they find out then?”
“This is the best news. If it’s true, it’s a real breakthrough and God knows we could use of one of those. There’s apparently a story in the texts about Elizabeth Clarke damaging the Witchfinder General. She had very long fingernails, apparently, and as the man tried to get her Book of Shadows away from her, she dug her fingernails into his arm, slicing his arm badly and drawing blood, which spilled all over the book.” Percy’s voice was excited at the news and Quinn could see why. So could Taliesin. His Withinner sounded excited.
This is good news. We can track him down like we did Cade if the blood is indeed his.
“That means the stains on the front of the book could belong to Matthew Hopkins. That’s a really powerful tool for us to use to track him down. I already have people on the lookout for any magyckal activity in Manningtree. Mistley actually, which was supposedly the place he was buried. Hopkins has roots there so it makes sense that Jeremy might go back there. We’ve had nothing yet but I’d imagine he’s masking himself well. We might just need a stroke of luck to pin down exactly where he is.”
A glimmer of hope surged through Quinn’s body. Blood was always a powerful way of finding magyck practitioners and their arts and if that was true, it was a welcome bit of news. Percy continued his story, his voice fairly matter-of-fact.
“I know you won’t like this request, but the research team have asked for the book to be sent over to them so they can do some testing on the stain and verify it is blood, see how old it is and what else they can find in the book. I know you sent over a replica but they really want the real thing. Now, I know how you feel about the book and you’ve probably married it by now and had a honeymoon, you may even have babies on the way, but—”
Quinn sighed heavily. “Enough already, you idiot, I know what I’m like and it’s not a bad request. They deserve to see the real thing and if they can find out more about it than I can, they should have it. I’ll get it sent over ASAP.”
His Withinner commented silkily.
This is indeed an unexpected reaction. Normally you would have combusted at that idea like a chestnut in an open fire.
Quinn scowled.
Well, perhaps I’m learning a little bit of restraint, you poxy sorcerer. Now get out of my head and leave me be.
Taliesin shook in mirth.
“Wow, I must say I expected a lot more resistance to that idea than I got,” Percy said, gob smacked. “You really are mellowing in your old age, aren’t you?”
Quinn snorted. “Don’t overstep the friendship line, Marshall.” But his voice held laughter. The news had definitely made his mood better. He glanced out of the window and his heart leapt as he saw Cade’s tall figure making his way across the heath.
“Once they have the book, let me know the minute they have any results on the tests. If it is blood, we can then convene a Withinner’s Circle and between them, they can try and track down where Jeremy Payton is. Wherever he is, we’ll find Matthew Hopkins. This has been great news. I’ll come down to the Reponosium and personally thanks all those researchers for doing such a great job.”
“They’ll appreciate that, even though Stephen will probably ignore you and hurry back to his books. Don’t be offended if he does; he’s a strange bird.”
Quinn chuckled. “I’ll remember that. Anything else?”
“Nope, that was it for now. I’ll be in touch as soon as I have anything new. Speak to you soon.”
Chapter 11
Cade leaned back in his dining chair at the restaurant and patted his stomach. He grinned at Quinn, who sat opposite him, wincing at the amount of food he’d just eaten. He’d put away more food in one sitting than Cade had ever seen him eat.
“I am now officially stuffed. That was one of the best meals I’ve ever eaten.” Cade gazed around admiringly at the dimly lit restaurant with its sophisticated ambience and quiet atmosphere. “I think all I want now is coffee and then home.”
Quinn nodded. “Me too—except I think might have an Irish coffee instead.” He beckoned to a passing waiter and placed their order then sat back in his chair with a satisfied sigh.
“This was a good idea, an anniversary dinner.” He smiled at Cade. “I can’t believe we’ve been together a year. It actually seems much longer. In a good way of course,” he hastened to say.
“Not just been together,” Cade chided him. “Today is the day you ravished me at that charity event. That was really our first date, hence the anniversary dinner tonight.”
Quinn shook his head in amusement. “I’ll never live that down, will I?”
He reached over and took Cade’s hands in his, stroking his palm idly with his thumb. No one paid any attention to them. “I don’t regret a single thing. Meeting you on the heath that evening was my saving grace.”
Cade smirked in the candlelight. “Yeah right. I’m sure if I hadn’t been there you’d have met some other sexy Fey who would have jumped your bones without the hassle I gave you.” He picked up Quinn’s hand and kissed it softly. “But I’m glad it was me.”
The waiter arrived with their coffees and they sipped quietly.
“So, you said you didn’t want an anniversary present.” Quinn looked at Cade curiously. “Instead you said you had something else in mind that you wanted.” He leered at him. “What could that be, I wonder?”
Cade chuckled. “Not what you have in mind, although that may come later.” He hesitated. “You have to promise me you won’t get upset when I tell you what I want. It’s very important to me. I need to know you won’t go all prima donna on me like last time.”
Quinn’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t like the sound of this. Exactly what is it you want from me?”
Cade took a deep breath. “To talk. Really talk. At home there’s always someone to interrupt us, or you can’t wait to get to the basement to your books, or there’s some life threatening event that you have to prevent. It’s so difficult to actually have a conversation with you because you get distracted.”
Quinn was still, his eyes wary. “Okay. What do you want to talk about?”
Cade drew a deep breath. “I want to talk about your childhood. I want to know what you did, how you grew up, what you were like as a young boy, a teenager. I know you went to the prom, but did you ever fancy a girl or a boy who didn’t like you, did you get spots on your face—I want to get to know a bit about that part of your life.”
Quinn was still as he toyed with the silver candlestick on the table. The candle had long burnt down. Cade waited to see what his response was.
Finally Quinn looked up and sighed. “I promised you I’d open up and try and tell you more about me. So it’s not an unreasonable request as anniversary presents go. As long as you realise once you open my Pandora’s box, there’s no going back.” He smiled grimly. “It’s been a pretty eventful childhood so I hope you can stomach some of it. I’m no angel, I promise you.”
“Nothing you could do would make me think less of you.” Cade’s hands covered his on the table. “I know this may be painful, but I’d really like to know a little about your parents.”
Quinn looked down at the table. “They were pretty good, from what I remember.” he said softly. “I only had them in my life for six years. My father’s name was Christopher, my mother was Angela. My dad was the Grand Master of the Consortium and it was his full-time job. The Fairmont family has always had plenty of money so he didn’t need to work at another job.” He grinned slightly. “It’s only overachievers like me that want to hold down a day job like a normal person.”
Cade smiled at his comment, nodding his head in agreement.
“My mother was a witch. She fell madly in love with my father when they met at some convention when she was eighteen and it was love at first sight. They had me quite young. My dad was twenty-one, my mum a year younger.”
He sipped his Irish coffee as Cade drank his coffee. Qu
inn’s fondness for his parents reflected on his face as he talked about them.
“It was obviously a strange childhood. Where other kids were attending play dates with their pals and going to birthday parties, I was learning about magyck and spells and learning how to be physically strong. When you take on your Withinner at age seven, it’s a really intense and physical ritual and they wanted me to ready for it. So I learned how to fight, how to deal with pain, how to be strong.”
Cade squeezed his hands and Quinn smiled.
“It was a tough existence but it was rewarding and my parents did what they could to prepare me for what came later. I couldn’t have had a better grounding. Of course, from birth I was being groomed to be the next Grand Master. But we didn’t expect it would be so soon, that they would die so early.”
His voice trailed off slightly.
“I didn’t want to dredge up your parent’s death,” Cade said quickly. “I don’t want you feeling uncomfortable. Tell me what happened when you were a teenager.”
Quinn shook his head firmly. “You need to know everything I want to tell you. You can’t take part of my life out because you don’t want to hear it.”
Cade stayed silent, watching him, knowing he was getting what he’d asked for. His lover’s eyes were distant.
“We had a house in St. James, a large penthouse. I remember sitting in the lounge, playing with an aeroplane I’d been given for my birthday, when it got really cold. I thought the door had opened; it was the middle of winter and the hallway outside could get quite chilly. I remember getting up to go see what was going on and then…nothing. It’s as if it just all got blanked out.”
Quinn’s face was tight. “The next thing I remember was seeing both of my parents on the floor.” His voice was grim and he held onto Cade’s hands tightly. “They were both dead already, I could see that. Their bodies were contorted and my father had been sick on the floor.”
“Please don’t carry on.” Cade’s voice was agonised. “This isn’t what I wanted.” He wished he’d never started this conversation.
Quinn smiled, his mouth twisted in pain. “I told you before, I don’t have many happy-ever-after stories. Let me finish. It might be good for me to talk about this to you as well. That can be my anniversary present from you.” He heaved a shuddering sigh. “The next thing I knew, someone picked me up and barrelled out of there so fast it was a bit like a dream. A Warlock friend of my father’s had come over to see my folks, seen what had happened and got me out of there. His name was Edward Mistral.”
Quinn’s eyes closed briefly and an expression of pain crossed his face. Cade wondered what darker connection this Warlock had to him.
“Edward saved my life. Apparently I would have been next if he hadn’t gotten to me when he did. He said there were Witchhunters in the apartment. I don’t know how they got in or how no one sensed them. Edward destroyed them both and got me out of there. He called Daniel and his wife Moira, who as you know was my aunt and they came to fetch me. From that time on, I lived with them. Daniel was my surrogate father and Moira was, to all intents and purposes, my mother.”
His voice went quiet. “Moira was killed four years ago by the Witchhunters Alliance. Daniel was devastated as was I. We both threw ourselves into work and fighting the Alliance and until I met you, that was basically all I did.”
He caressed Cade’s fingers gently with his. “Now I have you, and despite everything that’s happened, I’m happy. It is our anniversary, Cade, so enough tales now of people dying.”
Cade swallowed uncomfortably. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”
Quinn smiled gently. “Yes you did, you sexy little liar. It actually feels good to tell you about it. I haven’t ever had someone I can do that with. It’s been a good thing, I promise. I could get used to this baring of my soul.” He chuckled softly. “And yes, I did have a crush on a boy when I was twelve who didn’t return the favour and it broke my heart. I didn’t have spots. I enjoyed looking down girl’s blouses and checking out boy’s crotches and was nearly expelled from school for being found smoking. Although it wasn’t a cigarette; it was some herbal thing my aunt gave me to cure a sore throat but the teachers were having none of it. Typical adolescent behaviour, perhaps a little more strange than normal, but still just teenage angst.”
Quinn’s face was mischievous. “I went to my senior prom with a girl called Victoria, and I didn’t get leg over like you did with Lurch. I was a perfect gentleman. And of course, you already know about my first sexual encounter so we won’t go into that again.”
Cade chuckled, glad to see Quinn joking again.
“No, we’ll leave that one alone.” He looked around the restaurant. “It’s looking very empty, I think they might be waiting for us to leave. Perhaps we should get home and I can give you your other anniversary present.”
Quinn looked at him with smoky eyes. “I hope that means what I think it means or you’re going to have one very disappointed man on your hands.” He stood up. “I’ll go settle up the bill. You get your jacket and I’ll see you at the desk.”
He leaned down and kissed the top of Cade’s head gently before disappearing to the counter to pay. Later that night they lay in bed together after Quinn had been given his anniversary present. Cade thought drowsily that he’d seemed very pleased with his bondage session and had certainly entered into the spirit of things.
“Are you awake?” Cade nudged his arm gently.
Quinn sighed. “I am now. I was just falling asleep.”
Cade pressed into Quinn’s warm body. “Thank you for talking about yourself. It was the best present I could have.”
“It’s a pleasure,” Quinn said sleepily. “I’m trying to be a good boy and keep my promises.”
Cade chuckled throatily. “You’re always such a good boy. I love you—you know that, right?”
Quinn pressed lips to Cade’s hair where it was tucked into the crook of his arm. “I love you too. Now will you please go to sleep? I have to be up early in the morning.”
Cade wrapped an arm across Quinn’s stomach and closed his eyes.
Chapter 12
Quinn stood up from his desk and stretched. He’d been busy in his library most of the morning. Daniel and Percy were coming around to give him an update on the research being done at the Reponosium. He locked up and made his way up to the living room. Cade was sitting in the armchair, a Men’s Health magazine open in front of him. He grinned up at Quinn.
“Wow, the Kraken comes out of its den. It’s a Saturday morning and you’ve been in your library for the past four hours.” He looked at his watch. “Daniel and Percy will be here any minute. They said they’d be here about midday.”
Quinn nodded as he took an ice-cold beer out of the bar fridge and drank it straight from the bottle thirstily. He wiped his mouth and plonked himself down on the couch, lying with his legs stretched out along the length of the sofa.
“I don’t like meeting Daniel here at the house but I think we managed to make sure things are secure from outside eyes. But I won’t make a habit of it. Percy said he had some more good news and needed Dan here.” He grimaced. “Hell knows we can use something positive. I’m hoping he’s found a way to track down Jeremy Payton. I’m getting a bit twitchy about the fact that he’s been so quiet. At least on the Warlock side. I understand the witches have had a couple of strange deaths and Valensia has her teams on high alert.”
He frowned. “I suppose we should count ourselves lucky there haven’t been any Warlock deaths.” The doorbell rang and Quinn got up to answer it. When he opened the door, Daniel and Percy stood there.
“Come on in.” Quinn waved them into the living room. Quinn handed them both a beer as they sat down and settled himself down again on the couch. “It’s good to see you, Daniel,” he said quietly. “It’s been a little while. How are things at the Alliance and RAW? Is everything still running smoothly?”
Daniel nodded, his sinewy frame getting comfortable in
the chair.
“I’m still shuffling roles.” He smiled tiredly and Quinn saw the strain in his mouth and in his eyes.
“Dan, if it’s getting too much, you need to pull out. I know we agreed you could do this but I don’t need you taking any risks. There’s been enough tragedy already. We’ll find another way.”
Daniel shook his head. “I’m fine, honestly, I can do this some more. Believe me, I’ll tell you when my double-agent status gets too much.”
He grinned at Quinn but the Warlock wasn’t quite sure he believed his uncle’s words. He nodded dubiously. “Don’t take chances.” Quinn looked over at Percy. “So, you look as if you’re dying to tell us all your news. Shoot, I’m ready.”
He took another slug of his beer and got comfortable on the couch.
Percy leaned forward in excitement. “Those researchers at the Reponosium are worth their weight in gold and they really appreciated you visiting them to thank them personally. It went down well.”
Quinn smiled. “I saw what you meant about that Stephen Moreson. He was a really strange bird. He didn’t even seem to know I was there, just kept nodding at whatever I said but looked like he’d rather be anywhere else.”
Percy chuckled. “It’s genius, that’s what it is. The man is so clever he has no idea how to interact with actual people. Anyway, the good news is that the stains on the book are definitely blood. They did some radio carbon dating on it and they are in agreement; it definitely could date back to the seventeenth century. We can’t definitively say it’s Hopkins’s, of course, but given the stories, the book, the carbon dating and the fact it’s blood, it all points to a pretty conclusive proof.”
The little group was silent as they digested Percy’s words. A surge of positivity radiated through Quinn’s body. This was indeed very good news.
Double Alchemy: Climax Page 9