Chapter 32
Chapter
Thirty-Two
I t took me four minutes and twenty-three seconds to run into the house, strap on all the weapons I could possibly need and change my clothes. It took me three minutes and forty-one seconds to sprint out of the garden down the street to the tram stop.
Frustratingly there was no tram in sight. I shoved my hands in my pockets and huffed. Would it be faster to run to Crackendon Square? Solstice was a public holiday in Coldstream, so the trams were on a reduced timetable; they could also be running late because of the large number of people heading to the square for the ‘celebrations’. I clenched my jaw as I tried to decide.
‘Hey, Mrs McCafferty!’
Mrs McCafferty? I turned my head and saw the kid, Adrian, with his mother and his brothers and sisters. ‘Kit,’ I said shortly. I hadn’t told them my name so they must have asked around. ‘I’m not married.’ I felt a flash of guilt for my lack of friendliness and forced a smile. ‘Happy Winter Solstice.’
He clearly hadn’t registered my mood because he beamed at me. ‘We’re going to Crackendon Square for the party. ’
My stomach tightened. ‘No.’
There was enough force in my voice to make his smile falter. He stared at me wide-eyed while I switched my gaze to his mum. ‘Don’t go,’ I told her. ‘If you want to celebrate the solstice in public, head to the Glebe to see what the Church of the Masked God are up to. They need the support. But don’t go to Crackendon Square.’
Her face had whitened, not as a result of my words but because of my tone. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘Nothing,’ I said. ‘Probably nothing. But don’t go to Crackendon Square. Trust me.’
Her eyes scanned my face. ‘Alright.’ She hesitated. ‘Thank you.’
I nodded and ignored the pouts from the younger children. She grabbed hold of their hands and started to drag them away from the tram stop. One of them was starting to cry.
I swallowed hard and thought about all the other families heading to Crackendon Square. Thankfully at that moment a tram rounded the far corner and shoogled towards me. There was still time. I could still do this.
It was standing room only inside the tram and I was squashed between a tall bony man who smelled of blue cheese and a short, plump woman who had a garland of flowers in her hair. I cleared my throat. They were going to think I was mad but I had to try.
‘Don’t go to Crackendon Square.’ I raised my voice so that as many people as possible would hear me. ‘Something bad is going to happen and you shouldn’t go.’
Several excited conversations hushed as people turned their heads towards me.
‘Don’t go to the square,’ I repeated. ‘Please. It’s dangerous.’
There were a few snorts of derision. The tall man frowned down at me. ‘You’re from the Church of the Masked God, ain’t ya? They’re only jealous that everyone has decided to go somewhere else for the solstice this year.’
I tried to stay calm. ‘I’m not from anywhere. I’m just telling you that going to Crackendon isn’t a good idea. Not today.’
‘Oh yeah? Where are you going, then?’
I ground my teeth. Damnit. ‘Your lives are in danger!’ I shouted. ‘Don’t go to the square!’
There was a beat of silence before most of the members of my unwilling audience started to laugh. My shoulders dropped. It was what I’d expected but even so it was depressing. These people didn’t know me, they had no reason to believe my words and they’d heard a million conspiracy theories over the years. Coldstream tended to breed daft ideas and whispered rumours – but that didn’t mean that some of them weren’t true.
‘Shut your trap,’ the man told me. ‘We’re off out to enjoy ourselves.’
I wasn’t going to convince them, so I’d simply have to try harder once I reached the square.
I conjured up a picture of the square and the surrounding buildings in my mind. The area would be packed. I was vertically challenged enough for it to be difficult to see anything, and I doubted I could squeeze my way to the front of the crowds. My best bet was to get up high; if I could scale one of the buildings to gain a decent vantage point, maybe I could spot the danger. The Paradigm Bank was my best bet: its flat roof was high enough for me to see everything, and thanks to its ancient outdoor fire escape it would be easy to climb.
I breathed out slowly. I had a plan of sorts; it wasn’t ideal, but it was the best I could come up with under the circumstances.
I pushed to the front of the tram. There were several loud complaints and tuts, and I received at least two elbow jabs in my ribs. ‘Stupid woman,’ someone hissed. I ignored them .
When we finally arrived I sucked in a sharp breath when I saw how many people had gathered. Hundreds, possibly thousands, were here to celebrate the solstice and see what the posters and flyers advertising the event had been about.
The tram doors swished open. I jumped out and pushed through the crowds to the bank building. As soon as I reached it, I veered around until I was at the bottom of the rusty fire escape. Ignoring the creaking of the metal, I sprinted up it.
I wasn’t the only one who’d thought to come up here. I was furious at the thought that someone might get in my way and stop me from doing whatever was necessary – but then I realised that it was Thane.
He turned to face me as soon as he heard my footsteps. ‘Kit.’ He sounded relieved rather than surprised.
I hadn’t seen him since he’d been carted away for medical treatment after the events at Brassick’s house. He looked well, if a little pale. ‘What are you doing here?’ he demanded.
‘I might ask you the same thing.’
He grunted. ‘You first.’
I met his gaze. ‘Brassick wasn’t Umbra’s leader.’
‘Why do you say that?’
I waved a hand at the people below us. ‘It’s the middle of the day and Umbra’s goal is to raise a demon. There’s no way that its leader would miss the event, and there’s no way a vampire could stand out there without burning up. Their big event takes place at noon . They could easily have arranged it for after the sun goes down in less than five hours but they didn’t.’
A muscle throbbed in Thane’s cheek. ‘Perhaps Brassick wanted to watch the action from a distance. Perhaps he wasn’t as convinced as his cronies that they could control whatever creature they invoke.’
‘Perhaps.’
He eyed me. ‘There’s more? ’
‘Nick came to see me. He spoke about a large conical flask into which they were decanting his blood.’
Thane finally understood. ‘And there was no such flask at Brassick’s place.’
‘I don’t think this is over.’ I folded my arms. ‘What’s your story?’
He looked away. ‘The numbers.’ He sounded oddly defeated. ‘The numbers Brassick used to label us all. Paul was Number One. Alice was Number Two. I was Number Three and Nick was Number Four.’
Suddenly I realised what was worrying him. ‘Lorna,’ I breathed.
His jaw tightened. ‘Brassick didn’t mention her at all.’
‘But she told us she’d been attacked just like you. Before you, in fact.’
He didn’t answer.
‘Did you go to her house? Did you speak to her?’ I demanded.
‘Nobody was home.’
‘Maybe she’s gone out of town for the holiday. Maybe Brassick forgot about her.’ Even as I said the words, I didn’t believe them.
Lorna had played us all. No wonder Umbra were sure they could control whatever demon appeared: they were using Lorna’s blood to complete the invocation. She’d daubed her apartment block with graffiti, she’d pretended to be attacked and she was inexplicably wealthy. Maybe Brassick had bankrolled her or maybe it was the other way around. It didn’t really matter.
‘If she shows up here,’ Thane said dully, ‘we’ll know for certain.’
No sooner had he finished speaking than a trumpet sounded across the square. Thane and I gazed over the crowd. When I saw the figure step out of the building, I knew we were right: it was unmistakably Lorna. Blood was dripping from both her arms and splattering the stone cobbles. She was holding a large conical flask containing a dark, viscous fluid.
I reached for my gun.
‘People of Coldstream!’ She amplified her voice magically so that everyone could hear. ‘People of Coldstream!’ she repeated. ‘Witches, druids, ogres, nymphs, shapeshifters, trolls.’
‘Leprechauns!’ someone yelled.
‘Squibs!’ shouted another. There was a ripple of good-humoured laughter.
Lorna smiled beatifically. ‘All of you! Happy Winter Solstice!’
As the crowd roared, I lowered myself to the rooftop; I’d be more certain of my aim if I was lying flat. I reached into my pocket, pulled out a silencer and fixed it to the gun’s muzzle. I didn’t want to create panic in the crowd, and I didn’t want to kill anyone other than Lorna.
‘Don’t kill her,’ Thane said, as if he’d heard my thoughts. I squinted upwards at him ‘We need to talk to her.’
I snorted. I was done talking.
‘And if she drops dead,’ he went on, ‘she’ll drop that damned flask. Between what’s in it and her own blood, there’ll be enough to bring forth a demon.’
True. I adjusted my aim. If I hit her shoulder, she’d be flung backwards. With any luck, the flask would land on top of her and remain intact. I inhaled. There was no point in wasting any time. I squeezed the trigger and took the shot. There was a dull phht as the bullet was ejected and I felt the jolt.
Nothing happened. Lorna was still smiling – and still standing .
‘You missed,’ Thane growled.
I didn’t fucking miss. I never missed. ‘She’s using some kind of magical ward.’
‘She’s a werewolf, not a damned witch,’ he snapped.
‘Then there’s another member of Umbra who we’ve not found yet. Someone in that crowd is powering the barrier magically.’
He hissed under his breath. ‘I’ll find them.’
‘Be quick, Thane. Look for anyone who’s focusing on the space around Lorna rather than Lorna herself, anyone holding a box.’
‘I know what to fucking look for.’ He was angry because his old friend and ex-partner had fooled him. I couldn’t blame him; she’d fooled me too.
The noise of the crowd started to die down. Thane clattered down the fire escape while I held my position and waited, hoping he’d find the witch who was protecting Lorna.
She spoke again. ‘Twice a year Coldstream comes together to celebrate the solstice, but we know deep down that we don’t really have anything to celebrate. We are not a unified city. We keep to ourselves and our own communities. We don’t help our neighbours. We don’t have a governing body that has everyone’s best interests at heart.’
That wasn’t the speech all those people down there had been expecting and I could hear grumbles even from up here on the roof.
‘The rest of the world ignores us! The rest of the world passes us by while we focus on ourselves and not on making Coldstream the best, most powerful city in the country. We could be so much more! The right leader can bring us together. The right leader can show everyone else that we are a power to be reckoned with. ’
‘Who’s the right leader?’ somebody in the crowd bellowed out. ‘Because it’s not you! It’s not a damned werewolf!’
There was a wave of amused titters but many were listening carefully, taking in Lorna’s words. I glanced to my left and spotted Thane’s bobbing head. Thank goodness for that bright ginger hair that made him so visible. He was elbowing his way through the mass of people, searching desperately for any sign of an Umbra witch.
‘You are correct!’ Lorna answered. ‘It’s not me. It would never be me.’
Yeah, yeah. She wanted it to be her; she was going to use a damned demon to make it her. ‘I am going to bring somebody here who can make Coldstream powerful!’ she shouted.
I checked on Thane again. He’d stopped and seemed to be staring at something – or someone. He veered slightly left towards the fringes of the crowd. ‘Come on, Thane,’ I whispered. ‘ Come on .’
‘I am going to bring the leader we deserve!’
Another voice sounded from the crowd. ‘Hurry up then!’
Lorna’s smile broadened. ‘As you wish.’
I clenched my jaw. For fuck’s sake, Thane, do something!
He’d reached a man in a dark cloak who was holding something. Thane punched him hard in the jaw and wrestled the thing from him. I recognised it immediately as a witch’s box used to contain all manner of magical material. That had to be what was powering the magic barrier that was protecting Lorna. Thane held it aloft, about to smash it to the ground.
I re-checked my position and my aim. Any second now. Any … second … now.
Thane hurled the box to the ground at the same time as Lorna dropped the flask. Blood gushed forth at her feet and I squeezed the trigger again, still aiming for her shoulder. This time the bullet found its target .
The barrier was broken. Lorna’s body jerked backwards and I exhaled with relief, but I’d relaxed too quickly. The blood that had come from at least one lone werewolf – and quite likely more – was spilling across the ground in front of Lorna’s feet. Shit.
A few people cried out in alarm probably more because of Lorna’s collapse than anything else they suspected was happening, although thick red smoke was already billowing forth as the magic of the blood and the day coalesced.
I peered past it and caught a brief glimpse of Lorna struggling to sit up. Her lips were moving as she muttered some final incantation that would seal the deal and summon a demon. I adjusted my sights. I’d shoot her in the head this time if that was what it took to stop her.
Then I saw Thane flying towards her. An instant later, he vanished as he was swallowed by the cloud of scarlet smoke. That was when the ground started to shake.
The crowd were more alarmed now and there were screams and cries as the building beneath me juddered and swayed violently. More and more of the red smoke filled the square and there was nothing I could do. I couldn’t see any targets, couldn’t see beyond the damned smoke and the fleeing people.
There was a loud crack, as if the air itself was splitting in two.
I focused on the thickest part of the smoke cloud. I doubted that my bullets would do much against a demon but I’d certainly try. I had to try.
A breeze picked up from the western side of the square, not particularly strong but enough to clear some of the smoke. I concentrated on my breathing. Even if Lorna were dead, I couldn’t allow a demon to take hold of Coldstream. This city wasn’t perfect, not by a long shot, but it didn’t deserve this. It didn’t deserve the chaos that a creature from the underworld would bring.
And then the smoke gusted upwards to reveal a tiny creature sitting in the pool of werewolf blood. My mouth dropped open and I lowered my gun.