FIFTEEN WELCOME TO THE GUILD #2
‘Well done, Theo, beautiful work,’ Charles says.
Nathaniel steps forward, taking the pendant from Theo. ‘Allow me,’ he says.
I smile, and Nathaniel places the pendant around my neck.
There’s a squeeze on my shoulder. It’s Tariq. He’s beaming.
‘Welcome, Liam O’Connor, to the Keepers of the Crossing,’ says Charles, and the room breaks into applause once again.
‘Now, with that settled,’ Charles continues, ‘let’s commence the meeting. Please, take a seat.’
I do as he says, taking a seat on the pew between Tariq and Opel. Tariq hands me a tissue for my cut.
For the next twenty minutes, discussions delve into a sea of positions and names within the Guild.
It’s a drone of information that bores me to the point of stifling yawns.
I even catch Nathaniel suppressing one. Tariq, on the other hand, remains engaged.
Is his interest genuine, or is he simply better at masking his boredom than I am?
I seize the opportunity to scan the room more freely.
Apart from Principal Gellar, the majority remain strangers to me.
It’s weird seeing Principal Gellar outside of college; it’s even weirder that she now knows I’m a Keeper.
Will she acknowledge it if I see her around?
Maybe she’ll tell my teachers to be more lenient on my grades. That I could get on board with.
‘What about the Dark Friars?’ Charles says.
A man at the rear of the room rises, adjusting his tie.
‘There’s been no sign of them, Mr Martindale,’ he reports, before resuming his seat.
‘And Draven Blyth?’ Charles continues.
‘Nothing,’ Nathaniel says.
‘It’s crucial we locate them,’ Charles says. ‘I want every Guild member on high alert. We need to uncover their intentions here in Sarumbourne.’
A movement beside me startles me. Tariq stands up.
‘But what about Draven’s offer?’ he says.
Whispers ripple through the room as Charles pauses briefly.
‘Yes, Nathaniel briefed us. We’re aware, Mr Ashar,’ says Charles.
Tariq scans the crowd, then directs his gaze back to Charles. ‘And?’
Charles sighs. ‘The Guild cannot entertain a proposition from a Dark Friar. The man is not to be trusted.’
‘I get that,’ Tariq begins. ‘But he threatened Liam. If we start probing into the Dark Friars’ activities, Draven will retaliate.’
Retaliate. Meaning kill me. Though I know this, hearing it reiterated sends a shiver down my spine. Last week, my biggest concern was falling behind in coursework; now, it’s simply staying alive.
‘Mr Ashar, let’s not lose sight of the Guild’s fundamental mission: to protect the Crossing and ensure the safety of our city’s residents,’ Charles says. ‘We cannot allow the jeopardy of a single Keeper to divert our focus.’
‘A single Keeper? What about three Keepers? Do you even remember what occurred at that church?’ Tariq says, glaring up at Charles.
‘Tariq!’ Nathaniel warns.
‘The incident with Thomas Freeman was tragic, no doubt, but the paramount concern is the safety of our city,’ says Charles.
Charles’s tone has shifted; the lines on his forehead are growing bigger by the second. Tariq is clearly getting under his skin.
‘The only way to ensure people’s safety is by ensuring the survival of your Keepers,’ Tariq counters.
‘Enough. Let’s put it to a vote,’ Charles suggests. ‘All in favour of declining Draven Blyth’s offer, please raise your hand.’
There’s a brief murmur before hands begin to rise throughout the room. There are so many, it’s not even worth asking for a vote on the alternative. It’s good to know the majority of people here would throw me in a grave to get the information they want. Even Opel has her hand up.
‘Opel?’ says Tariq.
‘They’re right, Tar. Draven isn’t here to watch the Christmas lights switch on. He’s here to mess things up, just like last time.’
Tariq shakes his head.
‘Well, that settles that. Take a seat, Mr Ashar,’ Charles says, gesturing dismissively.
Tariq complies. I attempt to catch his eye to say thanks for his efforts, but he avoids my gaze, staring at the floor instead.
‘Charles, what of Liam’s vision?’ Nathaniel says.
‘Ah, yes. I’ve consulted with some of our colleagues, and we’ve agreed it is unusual. However, what Mr O’Connor saw cannot be taken as evidence of anything.’
‘What?’ I say, before I can stop myself.
‘You must understand, Mr O’Connor, a Keeper’s dreams can be misleading,’ says Charles. ‘Yes, the fate of your predecessor is at the forefront, but other elements of your mind can intertwine.’
‘I did mention to you that Draven himself was curious about what Liam saw, did I not?’ Nathaniel says, clearly just as thrown as I am at Charles’s dismissiveness.
Charles studies Nathaniel for a moment, before turning to me.
‘These eyes you saw in your predecessor, can you describe them for us?’
I hesitate, unsure whether to stand now I’m being spoken to. I remain seated. ‘They were black, with yellowy bits.’
‘Yellowy bits?’ Charles says.
Someone chuckles in the crowd.
Suddenly, it clicks. Katie’s Instagram post! I pull my phone from my pocket and begin searching.
‘Liam, what are you doing?’ Nathaniel says.
I find what I’m looking for and move toward Charles. I hold up my phone and he takes it from me.
‘This is Katie’s artwork. She posted this just a few weeks ago.’
Charles stares at the phone for a few moments, then back at me.
‘These are the eyes I saw in my dream,’ I continue. ‘Katie had obviously seen them too.’
Charles beckons a woman from one of the pews to him. He mumbles something to her and she takes out her own phone, snapping a picture of my screen.
Charles hands my phone back to me. ‘Thank you, Mr O’Connor, we’ll look into this.’
‘That’s it? You’ll look into it?’ I say.
‘Do you propose something else?’ says Charles.
‘We could find out more about what happened to Katie in the days before she died. We could talk to her parents—’
‘Absolutely not. The Guild has already gone to great lengths to protect our secrets. The Ford family should be left alone.’
Gone to great lengths?
‘You’re the reason I couldn’t find anything at Smokers’ Clearing. You covered up her murder?’
‘What we do within the Guild is of no concern to you, Mr O’Connor. Now, let’s—’
‘Wait a second, what about her parents? Her family? Have you thought about them?’
‘Liam, enough,’ Nathaniel says, getting in front of me and gesturing to my seat.
I slump down between Opel and Tariq.
‘Good first impression, kid,’ Opel whispers.
Charles stands up, and the rest of the room does the same. ‘I think we better leave it there for today. Meeting adjourned.’
Each member of the Guild slowly leaves the building, heading out into the night.
Tariq is talking to Opel in the far corner of the reception.
Their conversation appears heated. As I look back into the courtroom, Nathaniel is sitting with Charles on one of the higher pews.
Someone nudges me from behind and I turn to see Lucas putting on his coat.
‘You survived your first Guild meeting. Congratulations,’ he says, slurring less than when I last saw him.
‘Thanks. I guess,’ I say.
‘They’re all idiots, you know, my grandad included.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Voting the way they did. They’re risking your life. We need all six Keepers together again, and we would be closer to that if the Guild weren’t so modernised now.’
Lucas casts an ugly glare in the direction of the last few Guild members leaving the courtroom.
‘What are you talking about?’ I say.
‘Have they not told you? You, Tariq, and Opel aren’t the only active Keepers right now. There’s another, the Fourth Keeper, Heather Willet.’
‘But Nathaniel said the Fourth Keeper hadn’t awakened yet,’ I say, suddenly wondering if I had misheard him.
‘I’m sure that’s what he’d like you to think, but the reality is she’s alive, currently locked away as she’s a complete nutjob.’
Does Tariq know about this too? The way he reacted to the topic back in Nathaniel’s office… why would they hide this from me?
‘If I were in charge, I’d have her killed,’ he says, coldly.
‘Killed?’
‘Heather is stuck in an institution, probably counting down her days anyway. If we end her life, in a humane way, of course, and locate her successor, we’d have four full-fledged Keepers of the Crossing.’
Theo appears from behind Lucas, fitting a scarf loosely around his neck. They really do look similar, only Theo’s eyes seem gentler than Lucas’s.
‘Don’t be a twat, Lucas. What you’re suggesting hasn’t been done in decades,’ Theo says. His sharp-edged cheek bones flex as he talks.
‘Liam, this is my brother, aka the Guild’s golden boy,’ Lucas says, his eyes rolling.
‘Shouldn’t you be out getting pissed right about now, Lucas?’ says Theo, patting him on the back.
Lucas gives his older brother a glare before doing up his coat.
‘See you around,’ he says to me, before leaving.
‘Ignore him. He’s stuck in the old ways, and what he was suggesting was barbaric,’ Theo says, stepping closer to me.
‘Yeah, like someone slicing open a stranger’s finger in front of an entire room of people.’
He laughs. ‘Yeah, sorry about that. It’s ceremonial. Well done for speaking up in there though; it can be a tough crowd, and my grandad can be a stubborn arsehole.’
‘Yeah, I sort of got that impression.’
Tariq appears at my side. ‘Theo.’ He nods.
Theo nods back. ‘Nice to meet you, Liam.’
He leaves, linking arms with Opel as they head outside.
‘Are Theo and Opel…’
‘Together? No. But they have sex. A lot,’ Tariq says. ‘Let’s get you home.’