Chapter 23 #2
I blinked. ‘A video?’
He smiled faintly. ‘Unusual in Coldstream, I know.’
‘Can I see it?’
‘There’s no point. Longchamps makes a brief, self-aggrandising speech then strides into the maze like an all-conquering hero. That’s all you need to know.’
‘Alan mentioned a map,’ I persisted.
William shrugged helplessly. ‘I heard something along those lines. Chester didn’t mention it in the video but I know he entered the maze with a bellarmine jug.
I think it contained a map that he believed would lead him to the monster.
Chester thought that he could take it out if he could approach it unawares. ’
‘Maybe he did. Maybe he got lost on his way out.’
‘Ms McCafferty, I wish I could believe that. I truly do.’
I sighed and met his eyes. ‘You know you lot really have fucked this all up?’
‘Yes,’ he said. ‘I know.’
I thought about all he’d said then I changed the subject. ‘So what happens now? To me? I killed one of your own. I can’t pretend I didn’t because there were at least a hundred witnesses. Will you throw me in your cells and charge me, or will you pass me to the MET to deal with?’
‘Neither,’ William replied. ‘Here in the Understream, we…’ He didn’t finish his sentence because there was some sort of commotion from the other side of the door. Raised voices. My ears pricked up when I realised I recognised one of them.
The door burst open and Penelope rushed in, closely followed by Thomas. She was dressed to the nines in a billowing dress with her trademark corset on top, but her hair was askew and her expression was harried.
‘What are you doing? Release Ms McCafferty this instant! This is ridiculous!’ Penelope’s gaze swept from William to me. ‘And what the fuck is all this? A rope and chains and a ward? Is that not overkill?’
‘That’s exactly what I said,’ I told her.
If she heard me, she didn’t react. Instead she whirled to face William. ‘She has done nothing wrong here and you know it. Alan Vennington brought it on his own head. Sacrifices? Seriously? He was lucky he got off as lightly as he did.’
William opened his mouth to answer and so did I, but neither of us got the chance to say anything. ‘And don’t think that I don’t have words for you, Kit!’ Penelope snapped. ‘I went looking for you! When you disappeared off the map and William came to tell me, I went in search of you.’
‘You shouldn’t have done that,’ Thomas said.
‘She is my friend! Of course I should!’ She looked at me. ‘I did not mean that. We are not friends.’
‘Definitely not,’ I murmured. ‘Never.’
Penelope harrumphed.
‘You shouldn’t have gone to the maze, Pen,’ Thomas reiterated.
She deflated in the face of his concern. ‘If there had been a choice, I would not have – and it did not do me any good. All I found was a jittery ex-thrall.’
I startled. ‘Eric?’ That idiot. He must have escaped from Alan and returned to the maze on his own - or Alan had persuaded him to return. ‘Where is he now? Is he safe?’
She sniffed. ‘He’s right outside. I could not leave him at the maze, could I? It is too dangerous.’
I looked at her and she looked at me; the same guilt in William’s eyes was reflected in hers. She had known about the sacrifices, or at least she’d suspected.
‘That is good,’ William said, oblivious to the silent exchange between Penelope and me. ‘I assume he can confirm your story?’
I continued to watch Penelope. She should have told me about the monster and she should have done more about the sacrifices.
‘There was no proof,’ Thomas said, reading my expression. ‘And we didn’t know what to do.’
‘You did know,’ William said quietly. ‘You both petitioned me to close the Understream.’
Well, that was news. I stared at him. ‘Why didn’t you?’
He tugged at his collar. ‘Plans are underway,’ he admitted slowly. ‘If nothing changes between now and the end of the month there will be no choice, but some vampires will refuse to leave. We will have to abandon the worms. It will change everything.’
His body drooped and I caught a glimpse of a vampire with the weight of the world on his shoulders.
What. A. Fucking. Mess. If I hadn’t been tied up, I’d have been tempted to give the three of them a hug. And then I’d slap them. Several times.
William straightened up. When he spoke again, his voice was more officious as he put on his bureaucratic mask. Sometimes it helps to have a facade to hide behind.
‘The maze and its inhabitant are our problem and we will deal with it in due course. It is not your concern, Ms McCafferty. We thank you for your attempts to investigate the worms’ disappearances and we apologise for the trauma you experienced.
As I was about to explain before we were interrupted, in the Understream our rules are very simple.
If you are personally wronged, you may seek redress.
We will not lock you up and we will not charge you with any crime.
The murder of Alan Vennington was justified under the circumstances and acceptable under vampiric law. ’
I was already sensing a ‘but’.
‘But…’ he began. Here we go. ‘You are also an above grounder who has killed a vampire and there will be plenty who will demand punishment. I am revoking your pass to remain here with immediate effect. You will be escorted from the Understream and you will not be allowed to return. Ever.’
Given the circumstances, I could hardly disagree. Anyway, by the sounds of things there soon wouldn’t be any Understream to return to.
William muttered a few words to break the salt ward then grabbed my wrist and pressed his thumb on the small red mark branded there. I felt a brief, searing heat. When I looked down, the semi-circle had vanished and my skin was unblemished.
‘I need your map as well,’ he said.
‘I don’t get to keep it as a souvenir?’
He was not amused. ‘No.’
‘It’s in my bag.’ I pointed to my backpack that lay on the floor.
He rummaged inside and his eyebrows waggled as he realised what else I was carrying. He glanced at me several times in astonishment until, thankfully, he located the map and pulled it out. ‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘Now you must leave the Understream for good.’
Penelope exhaled, although I couldn’t tell whether it was from relief or exasperation. ‘Thomas and I will escort her to the surface.’
‘No,’ William said sharply. ‘You are too close to her. Justin, Robert and Gloria are still outside. They will do it.’
She clicked her tongue but she didn’t disagree. ‘Very well.’ She looked at me. ‘It has been an honour to get to know you. I mean that. I am truly sorry things turned out this way.’
Equally seriously, Thomas nodded. ‘What she said.’
Penelope stepped towards me, pulled me out of my chair and hugged me. ‘You are a good person, Kit. We can all learn something from you.’ A moment later she was gone with Thomas following in her wake.
William smiled sadly. He knelt down and adjusted the chains around my legs so that I could at least shuffle, even if breaking into a sprint would be impossible.
‘These will remain in place until you are above ground. Don’t come back here, Ms McCafferty.
It will not go well for you if you do. The Glebe clocktower entrance will be sealed after your departure.
’ He paused. ‘As will the entrance from Chester Longchamps’ house. ’
William had been doing his homework; he must have noticed that I’d entered the Understream via Longchamps’ house when he’d been tracking my whereabouts.
I nodded, then he called for the other three vamps and explained what was happening. All three were clearly disappointed that I wasn’t about to be tortured, killed or drained of all my blood but they agreed to see me safely to the surface.
‘Sure, we’ll do that. She’ll be absolutely fine.’ Gloria licked her lips like a stage villain. Uh-oh. She was clearly itching to do far more than give me a slap.
‘You can trust them, Ms McCafferty,’ William reassured me. ‘They’ll see you safely out of the Understream.’
That seemed doubtful but I didn’t have much choice. ‘What about the worms?’ I asked. ‘Four of them are still missing. Alan told me he didn’t think the maze monster had taken them.’
‘The worms are no longer your concern.’ He nudged me gently.
Given my bindings, it was enough to send me flying into the burlier of the two male vampires.
‘Goodbye, Ms McCafferty. I hope our paths never cross again.’ He nodded to the three vamps and they yanked me out of the office and into the cavern.
‘You should put her over your shoulder, Justin. It’ll be faster if you carry her,’ Robert said.
‘Then why don’t you carry her, Robert?’ Justin retorted.
Gloria bared her fangs. ‘Tell you what, I’ll carry her.’
I didn’t want to be carried by Gloria. I didn’t want to be carried by anyone, but Gloria was definitely the last person who ought to do it because she was thirsting for my blood.
‘I can walk,’ I told them and I started to shuffle as fast as I could. I didn’t move very fast and I didn’t get very far.
‘We’ll take a worm,’ Justin grunted. ‘It’s the best plan.’
The hapless trio nodded. As I sighed and glanced away, my eyes landed on Penelope who was standing fifty metres away. She raised her hand in farewell and I nodded gravely at her.
I was still nodding when I heard the distant scream. ‘Did you hear that?’ I asked my captors.
Gloria launched a kick at my knee. ‘No.’
‘Hear what?’ Justin asked.
There was another louder scream. Robert paled. ‘I heard that.’
From nowhere, an ear-splitting siren erupted. The few vampires milling near us froze for a second then they began to run as if the hounds of hell were after them.
‘Oh fuck,’ Gloria whispered. Her vicious expression had been replaced by terror. Suddenly I knew exactly what was happening.
‘The maze monster,’ Justin said. ‘It’s on its way.’
Robert shook his head. ‘No.’ His voice was laden with doom. ‘It’s already here.’
And then it really was.