by Helen Harper
‘Pardon?’
‘Call me Charley.’ I folded my arms. ‘How long will it take to get hold of this someone?’
She smiled. ‘Give me a minute.’
Chapter Six
When the strange woman said she would only be a minute, she wasn’t kidding. A mere forty seconds later, she strolled back into my house. This time she wasn’t alone. Directly behind her was a tall man with short, dark-red curls framing his face and the sort of swagger that instantly put me in mind of Max. He wasn’t overly large but his presence seemed to fill my hallway.
Considering he must have been loitering outside in order to have arrived so quickly, I was suspicious. Despite his light, dancing-blue eyes and good looks – and the sudden, unexpected kick of lust that I immediately quashed – his resemblance to my current nemesis put me on edge. And that was before he spoke.
Lifting his nose and sniffing the air, an expression of disgust flitted across his face. ‘What is that?’ he sneered in a strong Scottish brogue. Then he spotted me. ‘What are you?’
I resisted the temptation to kick him out. Whoever he was and however he acted, if he could help Lizzy I could deal with his ego. That didn’t mean I was going to roll over or simper like a helpless damsel in distress, though. I knew his type: give him an inch and he’d walk all over me.
‘The woman whose house you’re in,’ I answered coldly. I flicked a look at the woman. ‘Is this the best you can do? This guy with the ego the size of a blimp?’
She had the grace to look embarrassed on his behalf. ‘Give him a minute. He has, uh, a sensitive nose. It’s probably affecting him adversely.’
The man pushed past her and walked towards me, his expression glinting with a predatorial glare that made me want to turn and flee. I resisted the urge to step back and held my ground.
‘Sunshine,’ he muttered. ‘You smell of sunshine.’ He smiled slowly, his eyes crinkling. ‘Despite your hair, you’re rather pretty,’ he purred. ‘I like the freckles.’
His words were probably designed to make me want to drop my knickers right then and there, but his arrogant manner did little more than rankle. ‘Be still my beating heart,’ I said irritably. ‘What a wondrous compliment.’
He moved back a few inches, providing me with the breathing space I needed. ‘Sarcasm doesn’t impress me.’
The first thing I’d learnt when I’d started gambling properly was never to tell anyone what irked me because it only encouraged them to do it even more. So, of course, that’s what I did. I raised my eyebrows as if bored. ‘Oh no. I’m devastated.’
He watched me for a moment then inclined his head slightly. Maybe he wasn’t used to people standing up to him. ‘I apologise,’ he said, surprising me further. ‘The magic in the air is causing my … animalistic side to gain dominance.’ He grinned. ‘Next time I’m rude, feel free to slap me around.’ He bowed. ‘Thank you for inviting me in. I’m only here to help.’
Now I was even more suspicious; I’d have preferred it if he’d continued with the machismo. All the same, it was his words rather than his attitude that truly struck me. ‘Magic? Is that what you’re calling this spooky shit?’ Had Lizzy and I been right? Was all this apocalyptic crap actually magic?
The man waved a hand as if to dismiss what he’d said. I wasn’t stupid; I caught the brief flare in his eyes. ‘It’s what I call it.’
He’d been far too quick to answer. The feeling that he knew more about what was going on in my city than he was letting on was growing by the second. Whether he thought I was ‘rather’ pretty or not, I could tell he didn’t take me seriously. Men like him never did. That meant I had to goad him into giving me answers. When things got to the point where Lizzy transformed into a monster, I reckoned I deserved them.
Before I could say anything, the green-eyed woman butted in. ‘The problem is in there,’ she told him, jerking her head towards the living room.
He squared his shoulders. ‘Excellent,’ he said. ‘This won’t take long.’ He strode past me and opened the living-room door. I didn’t need to watch him to know what the expression on his face was.
I licked my lips. ‘Maybe I should wait for the real police,’ I said aloud, aware that my suggestion would irritate him. I was worried about what he might do to Lizzy; woe betide him if he hurt her.
The woman shrugged pragmatically. ‘The police won’t be able to help your housemate.’ She looked around. ‘Do you mind if I use your toilet while Monroe sorts this out?’
So that was his name. I sniffed. ‘Your Monroe doesn’t look like he’s sorting anything out.’ He hadn’t moved a muscle, he was simply staring at Lizzy. I’d been hoping my dig would make him react, if only slightly, but he didn’t even blink. I’d have to try harder.
If he did know what was going on across the city, then so did the mysterious green-eyed woman. I glanced at her. If she hadn’t come here to help with Lizzy, there was another reason for her visit. Given her toilet request, it was the only thing that made any sense. Was there something in my house that she wanted? She’d be hard-pressed to find much beyond dirty laundry. Still, if I annoyed him and unbalanced her, maybe I’d get to the truth. I had nothing to lose.
A normal person would probably have kicked the pair of them out, but these were hardly normal circumstances. ‘Help yourself,’ I said, in my most nonchalant tone. ‘Top of the stairs, turn right. If you want to snoop around, my bedroom is the next floor up.’
She blinked at me, obviously shocked, so I laughed. My ploy was working better than hers was. ‘You’re here for a reason and it’s not to help Lizzy. Even if I weren’t a gambling girl, I’d bet my eye teeth that you want something from me. Be warned,’ I told her, ‘I don’t have much to take. It’s not been a very productive month.’
She met my gaze head on. ‘I’m not here to steal anything. Neither am I here to hurt you. Or do anything bad. Or mess up your life. Or—’
‘I get it,’ I said, before her garbled explanation became embarrassing for both of us. In any case, there was something about her that made me think she was telling the truth. She had no tells that I could see.
I returned the favour. ‘If that caveman friend of yours helps Lizzy, I don’t really care why you’re here. Do what you want.’
‘Really?’
No. But if she got what she wanted then maybe she’d give me what I wanted – Lizzy’s return to form and answers about what the hell was going.
After a fraction of a second’s hesitation, I shrugged. ‘After the last twenty-four hours, and with half of the British Army patrolling the streets, I’m not sure I have any worry left. What will be will be.’
‘I’m Madrona,’ she said, holding out her hand in a friendly gesture.
It was about time I learned her name, even if it was a rather unusual one. I took her hand and shook it. ‘Hi.’
‘In the interests of honesty,’ Madrona said, ‘I’ve not actually seen a pink elephant, only on television. But if you know where one is, tell me. I’d love to get up close.’
‘Yeah,’ I grinned. ‘Me too.’ Except I couldn’t care less about damned pink elephants unless they were the reason why my world was going to hell in a hand basket. If Madrona and Monroe were here to manipulate me, though, I was going to manipulate them right back, including lying about pink elephants or whatever else happened to come my way.
She smiled again and headed for the stairs. As she passed Monroe, he finally moved. ‘Bunyip,’ he muttered.
I cocked my head. I must have misheard. Fortunately, I wasn’t the only one. Madrona raised an eyebrow at him. ‘Pardon you.’
Monroe tutted. ‘No. She’s a bunyip. An Australian creature. I’ve not heard of one existing for centuries. It must be in her ancestry – the magic has drawn the beast out of her.’ He shook his head. ‘Amazing.’
I narrowed my eyes. He knew what sort of monster Lizzy had transformed into? My instincts had been bang on.
‘Great,’ Madrona told him. ‘Continue with the fabulo
us work.’
I watched her head up the stairs. I bet all the money in my purse that she was looking around for whatever it was that had made the rats avoid me and the fire rain not fall on my house. And turned Lizzy into a – bunyip. If that were the case, then she and Mr Swagger Pants did indeed know what this supposed magic shit was about. If I could pry answers out of the pair of them, Madrona could snoop away all she wanted – I didn’t have any valuables or papers or anything lying around that she could steal.
There was still the niggling thought that the pair might have something to do with Max and his attempts to get back his money but sneaking wasn’t his suit. He preferred to go in all guns blazing. Nope. The likelihood that I had to worry on that score was virtually nil.
I debated trailing after Madrona as she poked her nose into my dusty corners and continuing to unsettle her to encourage her to talk, but for some reason I thought I might have more chance of getting the truth from Monroe. His ego was massive and people like that could rarely contain themselves for long. He was probably dying to boast about what he knew. Besides, he was the one who’d mentioned the ‘m’ word.
I had been banking on a scientific answer but that was before things got really freaky. Perhaps this was to do with magic – albeit magic that had apparently never existed or never shown itself before now.
I calculated various approaches before selecting the best one to achieve the desired outcome, then I sidled up and leaned against the wall, peering at Lizzy. Her head had dropped, as if she was refusing to look Monroe in the eye, and her body was motionless. Part of me hoped that she’d give herself a shake and try to attack him with her horns. Right now, she wasn’t doing much of anything.
Neither was Monroe.
‘Your boss has gone,’ I said in a conspiratorial whisper. ‘This is an old house and sound doesn’t travel well, so she won’t hear what you say.’ I poked his arm. Man, it was rock hard. ‘You made up that word, didn’t you? Bunyips don’t exist.’
His lip curled so I knew he’d heard me, but he didn’t react. His attention remained focused on Lizzy. He folded his arms and glared at her. Nothing else – a glare.
Lizzy raised her head a fraction, her black eyes flicking at him nervously. Then she dropped to the ground, rolled on her back and presented him with her belly.
My mouth fell open. He did all that with a look? Who on earth was this guy? Perhaps his arrogance was merited. I narrowed my gaze, wondering what he was planning to do now that he had Lizzy in total submission. When the tension in his shoulders eased a smidgen, he went up another notch in my estimation. He wanted to help Lizzy as much as I did.
‘Do it.’ His voice was low. In fact, it was barely audible.
I blinked. ‘Pardon?’
He hissed under his breath, ‘Not you.’ He kept his eyes trained on Lizzy, who remained perfectly still, albeit flat on her long furry back with her gigantic paws hanging loosely in the air. She looked like a golden retriever begging for a belly rub. Almost. ‘Do it,’ Monroe repeated.
Lizzy emitted a low, strangled moan. Alarmed, I leapt forward but Monroe barred my way, his tanned forearm stretching out in front of me.
‘You…’ I began.
‘Hush.’ He jerked his chin upwards and his voice softened to a low, melodic purr. ‘Come on, sweetheart. You can do it.’
Lizzy groaned. I felt even more uneasy. Do what? What exactly was he suggesting? Then one of her front paws jerked, as if someone had tied an invisible string to it and started tugging. Her other paws followed suit and her head began to thrash from side to side, thumping the wooden floor so hard that I could feel the vibrations under my feet.
‘Watch,’ Monroe said with quiet satisfaction. ‘Watch this.’
It started with her horns. Initially it was almost imperceptible but, as I focused, I saw them retracting, returning back into her skull inch by inexorable inch. By the time several inches of Lizzy’s horns had vanished, her muzzle was also starting to change. She stopped moaning but opened her mouth in a silent, agonised scream. Then her fur gradually disappeared, merging back into her skin.
In less than two minutes, the Lizzy I knew – the human Lizzy – was lying naked and defenceless on the living room floor.
I rushed past Monroe and this time he didn’t try to stop me. I grabbed a throw that was draped on the back of one of the now-broken deckchairs and wrapped it round her. Her pupils were still ringed with black but, when she looked at me in pathetic gratitude, the expression was that of my Lizzy.
I reached out and hugged her tightly. For a brief, heart-rending second she didn’t move a muscle. Then she let out a choked sob and hugged me back.
From out of nowhere a hand holding a glass appeared. ‘Salt water,’ Monroe said gruffly. ‘It’ll aid her recovery time. I’m assuming this is the first time she’s shifted, so she’ll be disoriented for quite some time.’
With a shaky hand Lizzy took the glass and gulped down the water. Once she’d finished, she wrapped her arms round herself. ‘Thank you,’ she whispered. She closed her eyes.
Monroe crooked his little finger at me imperiously. ‘We need to talk.’
‘I’m not leaving Lizzy alone.’
‘She’ll be fine now. She’ll recover more quickly if you leave her in peace. She’s vulnerable and confused, she needs some space to focus on herself.’
I opened my mouth to argue but Lizzy raised a hand and waved me away. With considerable reluctance, I backed into the hallway.
All my earlier plans to goad Monroe into telling me more about what the fuck was going on had melted into concern for my friend. ‘Is she going to be alright?’ I demanded.
He offered me a dismissive sniff. ‘She’ll be fine. She’ll never quite be the same again but she’s still essentially the person you know.’
I put my hands on my hips. ‘Explain. You obviously understand what happened to her and knew how to transform her back. What is she? What happened?’
‘You couldn’t possibly understand.’ He half turned away from me but I grabbed his arm. Slowly, as if angered that I’d dared to touch him, he wheeled back round.
‘Try me.’
Monroe’s blue eyes flicked at me disparagingly. ‘You might have noticed that things are not what they were.’
I ignored his patronising air. I wanted answers. Hell, I deserved answers. ‘You’re talking about hordes of rats and fire falling from the sky and the trees growing bigger at a rate of knots.’
‘I am.’ He glanced behind me at Lizzy, his gaze softening. ‘Your friend’s DNA isn’t wholly human. Under other circumstances, she could have lived her entire life without ever realising she was different. However, the … stuff in the air has brought out her other side.’
‘The stuff. You mean the magic.’
He shrugged. ‘If that’s what you want to call it.’
I gritted my teeth. ‘That’s what you called it.’
‘Yes,’ he said quietly. ‘I suppose I did.’ He ran a hand through his hair. ‘Look. Things are different right now. We’re working on a way to make them better again. I don’t know why your friend has been so badly affected by it, but the concentration of magic is strong and it probably overtook her in one surge. I’ve never seen anyone affected quite like that before and shift with such violence.’
I took a step back, folding my arms over my chest as I absorbed his words. There was nothing in his face to suggest he was lying to me. ‘So you’ve seen people do this before,’ I said. ‘You’ve seen people…’
‘Shift,’ he said helpfully.
‘Fine,’ I snapped. ‘Shift.’
Monroe nodded. ‘I have.’ His posture remained relaxed but I detected a faint tightening around his eyes. Ah-ha.
‘You do this, don’t you?’ I watched him. ‘You … shift.’
His body grew more tense and a muscle in his jaw throbbed as he looked away from me. ‘I do. Not like her but I do something similar.’ He took a threatening step towards me, his earlier arrogance r
eturning. ‘But if you think that you can tell others about her and about me, you’ll find a world of pain coming your way. We don’t give up our secrets gladly. You whisper a word about this and…’
Good grief. ‘Do you really think I’d endanger Lizzy by revealing what happened to her? That I’d film her and put it on YouTube for the world to see?’
Monroe sneered. His fear that I’d reveal the truth about Lizzy – and apparently about him – to the world was affecting him more than he wanted me to realise. ‘I don’t know you. There’s been little that I’ve seen so far that suggests you’re trustworthy. Or intelligent.’
So he was resorting to pointless insults; he really was concerned that I’d blab all about him. While I might understand where his barbs were coming from and why, that didn’t mean his words didn’t anger me. I curled my hands in fists. It didn’t help that his clever eyes noted my movement and amusement flashed across his face.
‘You don’t know anything about me.’
He snorted. ‘I know enough. The sort of woman who dyes her hair blue isn’t the sort of woman to be taken seriously.’
Now he was trying to goad me. I took a deep breath and calmed myself. Emotion wasn’t going to be my friend here, I had to focus on cold, hard logic. ‘How many of you are there? People like you and Lizzy who … shift?’
Monroe bared his teeth in a semblance of a smile. ‘Lots.’
Was that meant to be intimidating. ‘Madrona? Does she do it too?’
He shook his head. ‘She’s something different.’
‘And why is she here? Why are you both really here?’
His smile grew. ‘To retrieve what is ours and save the world.’
I glared. I had nothing of theirs – although Madrona had sneaked upstairs for a reason. Maybe it was something that I hadn’t noticed, left behind by one of the previous owners.
‘Stop worrying your pretty head about it,’ Monroe continued. ‘In no time at all, Manchester will return to normal and your life, whatever it may be, will continue as before. Lizzy can come with me. We’ll look after her.’