Endless Magic (Stella Mayweather Series Book 6) Page 12

  "She stepped out ten minutes ago. Something about desperately needing coffee, preferably intravenously. You're welcome to wait. I'm sure she won't be long." Clare gestured to one of the chairs as she arose. "If you like, I can call her cell phone and tell her you're here?"

  "No, I'll wait until she's had her coffee," I decided and Clare laughed. She was just about to sit again when the desk phone trilled. With a sigh, she stood up, moving around the coffee table to answer it. I turned away, looking at the view beyond. It dawned on me that observing the city was like mediation for me. A visually open space allowed my thoughts to soar. Despite growing up in London, I never considered myself a city girl. Home was a variety of suburban houses; and work? Just one dull office block after another. It wasn't until Étoile brought me here, far away and across the sea, that I was privileged to behold such stunning urban views. The extreme height never failed to amaze me, or how far it allowed me to see. It also impressed me that none of the tiny figures scurrying beneath us knew or cared that we even existed; much less suspected a supernatural war was about to be waged amongst them.

  Crossing over, I weaved between the chairs and around the coffee table. I was just about to step towards the window when I felt something brushing my legs as the sound of loose papers drifted off the table. Turning, I winced. "I'm so sorry!" I said, cringing as I stooped to collect the stack of papers I inadvertently knocked to the floor. "That was so clumsy of me."

  "Leave them!" Clare held up a hand as she glanced at me from the phone.

  "No, it's fine. I wasn't looking. I..." A name on the paper I picked up quickly caught my eye. My name. What the hell? I scanned the paper, hastily turning the page. "What the hell is this?" I asked, puzzled as I looked up from what appeared to be my medical report.

  "Nothing," said Clare, dropping the receiver and hurrying over. "Just some old files."

  "This is my medical file." I held it out of her reach as she strained for it.

  "It's old..."

  "This is dated from a few days ago! This dates from when Evan brought me back here."

  "Yes, it's just from..."

  "Don't!" it was my turn to hold a hand up as I stepped back from Clare, the file clutched securely in my grasp. "Don't lie to me! I can read the dates. This file is a readout from every day I've been here! How are you monitoring me?"

  "Stella?"

  I spun around at Étoile's voice. She was standing in the doorway, looking paler than I'd ever seen her. In her hand, she held a coffee in a takeout cup.

  "Am I being monitored?" I asked outright. I knew Étoile often omitted some things, but she rarely lied straight to my face.

  "Yes." She turned, shutting the door before crossing to her desk where she sat in the chair, watching me, and waiting for my next question. Probably so she doesn't incriminate herself, I thought in a rare moment of spite.

  "Why?"

  "To ensure you don't pose a risk to this building, nor any of its occupants."

  "What kind of risk?"

  "We don't know. You're being monitored merely as a precautionary measure."

  "How?" When Étoile hesitated, I asked again, "How?"

  "There's a small chip in your arm. It was inserted when you were unconscious."

  "What does it monitor?"

  "Your vital signs."

  "And you intended to tell me this… when?"

  "When we felt assured that your health and faculties were fully recovered."

  "I feel fine."

  "That's great then," said Étoile, throwing her hands in the air. "Let's take it out right now. Silly me for worrying about what might have happened to you."

  "You saw what happened to me! It played out directly from my head onto a wall!"

  "We saw what we were allowed to see. We don't know what is still blocked inside your head."

  "There are no..." I paused, wondering what I missed. Étoile didn't say “might be” or “could be,” she said, “blocked.”

  "You found a block?"

  "Yes, a small block that we can't get past. We don't know what you're suppressing or why."

  "I'm not suppressing anything."

  "Then the reasonable assumption is: something else is suppressing a memory inside your mind. But that's not why you're here. Why did you..."

  "Don't change the subject! We're talking about a block in my head, and a secret medical file, and a chip in my arm that I didn't know about!" I flapped the file for extra measure. "Let's talk about this."

  "What else do you want to know?" Étoile asked.

  That had me floundering for an answer. I didn't know what I wanted to know, except... "Everything."

  "I can't tell you everything. I can only tell you that we've detected no changes in your heart rhythm, your brain activity, nor any of your vital organs. Not even when The Brotherhood sent their message and your magic touched their spell."

  I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in. "That's good."

  "It is for now."

  "Who else knows about this?" I asked, still mortified at the idea of being monitored. Try as I might, I couldn't be angry about it. I had to understand. My need for privacy wasn't as strong as everyone else's need for safety. So what if they saw a twenty-four-hour heart rhythm? I could rationalise Étoile's decision to secretly monitor me, but it didn't mean I liked being kept in the dark.

  "Me. The medical staff here. Clare. My chief of security. Matthias. No one else."

  "Why Matthias?"

  "Because I have to sleep sometimes, and he doesn't require as much, given his non-living predicament. He can watch over you when I need him to."

  "Thanks, I guess."

  Étoile rolled her eyes. "I'll pass your gratitude along."

  "You still think The Brotherhood did something to me?" I asked, returning to the most obvious question.

  "Possibly, or they could simply be protecting their assets by ensuring some things aren't recalled by you. There is, however, another option."

  "What's that?"

  "Maybe some things are simply too awful for you to remember."

  "Great. Just great." What’s worse than being kidnapped and held captive? What could they have put me through that was so terrible, I can’t bear to remember it? Even as I thought about it, I didn't dare know the answer. "So this block could actually be me?"

  "Potentially. Lisette suggested your subconscious defences might have prevented us from discovering whatever you may have chosen to block."

  "I need to think about this. I know I want the chip taken out of my arm. You should have told me."

  "Maybe, but you weren't conscious at the time. Then, when you were, it was left as a..."

  "Precautionary measure," I finished. "I get it."

  "I'd like to leave it there for now," Étoile added. "If anything happens to you, I want to be sure we can get a medical team to you fast, especially when you could be anywhere in the building."

  "About that," I said, seizing my opportunity to get what I came for. "I need to leave. I need to go to my house."

  "Stella, we've talked about that. You can't leave, especially given the circumstances. Do I have to remind you of the fight I just had to ensure you and your cousin weren't handed over to The Brotherhood? Plus, you have a job to do here."

  "This is related to the job. I got a horologican, but it's the wrong one. I thought the prophecy asked for any horologican, but it is more specific."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Here." I pulled the book from my bag, sweeping through the pages until I came to the one I marked. "I was reading and the book began to show me my home before it ended with this. A picture of another horologican in my home. I think one was hidden there, maybe by my parents. I have to find it for the answers I need."

  "I can send someone else. Astra and Seren can collect it."

  "No, it has to be me," I told her, recalling the picture of my hands reaching for the book. "I don't think the book can be found by anyone else."

  "You're sure?"
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  "No, but the book is, and it’s never been wrong before. I need to get it; otherwise I don't know how to find the answers we need, not without alerting everyone to what we're looking for."

  Étoile gave a slow shake of her head. "It's too dangerous."

  "I can take back up with me. I can be there and back in under an hour."

  "You don't even know where this book is hidden."

  "I can use divining crystals... or... or Seren and David could write a spell."

  "It's too risky."

  "I could take Evan." I threw it out there; he was the most dangerous person I knew, the person on whom I could absolutely rely for my safety. And someone The Brotherhood knew better than to screw with. I'd already thought to ask for his company on another mission and I didn't need to remind Étoile that we could be in and out of my house without being seen; she was well aware of our talents. All I could do was fix her with a determined look and hope she acquiesced. "I need to do this," I told her after an uncomfortable minute of silence passed. "That book has the answers; and only I can find it."

  "What's your plan?" Étoile asked, barely concealing a sigh.

  "Evan and I head directly to my house. We shimmer inside. As soon as we retrieve the book, we shimmer back here. That's it."

  "And your precautionary measures?"

  "We tell no one. No one even knows we left The Amethyst. If The Brotherhood are watching the building, they'll never detect our absence. We'll be back before anyone even misses us."

  "What does Evan think of this plan?"

  "I haven't told him yet."

  "You better ask him. I'll need to speak with you both."

  I nodded, taking that as a sign that Étoile was seriously considering letting me go. I wondered if I would have gone anyway, without her permission. The daring little swell in the pit of my stomach told me I would. Étoile might have been my elected president, but she wasn't my captor, or my keeper. That reminded me, "I'm reading my medical file and I still want this tracking chip removed."

  "You can read the file. The chip is non-negotiable."

  "Everything is negotiable."

  Étoile fixed me with a steely look, which I returned just as easily. "It can be removed once we're sure your health isn't compromised in anyway."

  "Deal, but I want to be kept updated on all the readings." I held up my medical file, using it to give Étoile a little wave as I left the office, and nodding to Clare. I was sure she would face Étoile's wrath for the mistake of leaving the file out in the open, but I couldn't care less. Clare was complicit in keeping that secret from me, and it was only through luck that I discovered the truth. If I hadn't knocked over her paperwork, I would never have known about the implanted chip. Tucking the file into my bag, along with the horologican, I slung it over my shoulder before using my hand to palpate each arm. There it was; a tiny, little bump in the back of my left arm, just under the skin and barely noticeable.

  I had to keep my annoyance in check. If I didn't, who knew what could happen? Maybe I'd shake the windows out of the building. The rational part of me understood Étoile's motives: of course, she wanted to keep me safe. Yes, it was puzzling. That little block in my mind concealing something potentially so awful that I may never want to know what it was and I hadn't known it was there until now. However, that fiercely autonomous part of me still wanted to be party to anything involving me. I insisted on being the queen of my own body and refused to let anyone else make my decisions for me. The chip was a small price to pay for that.

  By the time I reached Evan, he was alone in his room, and my anger was fizzling rather than sizzling. Even so, he knew immediately that something was wrong.

  "It's nothing," I told him, stepping inside. "A minor disagreement."

  "Something you want to talk about?"

  "No, it's done for now."

  "You know where to find me," he said, thankfully letting the issue drop.

  "I do. I'm not sure I like what you've done with the place." I looked around his room. It was far from a non-descript, bland room now. Instead, Evan had tripled his large stack of books from the Council's archives. They were spread across his desk and a strange arrangement of photos and documents were tacked to his wall. I thought it looked like the murder board of a fanatic serial killer, the type I often saw on TV shows. It was nothing like the neat, orderly Evan I knew, but then again, hadn't everyone changed?

  Running my hands over the books, I noted the titles. They included everything from a history of dark magic, to necromancy, and defence magic to offensive. "What is all this?" I asked.

  "Research. I'm preparing our training schedule."

  "I thought you were just going to ambush me and throw bombs." Evan smirked and I felt myself deflating. "Oh, you were! Evan!" I squeaked.

  "The enemy won't call ahead so you can prepare. You'll need to defend and attack on instinct."

  "My day just seems to get better and better."

  "Since this isn't a social call, what do you need?"

  "Your help."

  "I figured. What am I helping you with this time?"

  "I need you to be my bodyguard, and maybe someone to do the heavy lifting with the shimmering," I said, cutting directly to the chase. All the research would have to wait until I had the next puzzle piece.

  "Go on."

  "I have to retrieve something from my house and I need your help to get there and back, safely and undetected."

  "It isn't something that you can call to you? Or delegate to someone else to retrieve?" Evan guessed.

  I nodded. "No, it's something only I can get."

  He pondered that, his face indecipherable. "When do we leave?"

  "As soon as possible. It's very important."

  "Are you going to tell me what it is? Or is this another mystery trip?"

  "I will tell you, I promise."

  "Is it something dangerous?"

  "No, but its value is rather high. That's all I can tell you until we get back. I'm sorry."

  Evan shrugged, like it was of little importance. Whether that was owing to my apology, or because I wouldn't tell him, I didn't know. Instead, all I could do was wait patiently while he stared at me, his eyes assessing mine. Finally, he reached out a hand. I placed mine in his as he said, "Let's go."

  "Now?"

  "Sure."

  "Don't we need to plan?"

  "Is it something that needs planning?"

  "I hate it when you answer a question with a question! Plus, I need to return my rucksack to my room. I don't want to carry it with me." I started to move towards the door. "Give me ten minutes and we can go, and Evan?"

  "Yes?"

  "Don't tell a soul. We have to be prepared for anything."

  "Believe me, I'm a lot more prepared than you."

  I tugged open the door, turning to face him at the threshold. "What do you mean? I'm prepared!"

  "I meant, you haven't even buttoned your blouse properly. This button is messed up." Evan reached for the placket of my blouse, loosening the button on my chest and popping it open. I couldn't wrench my eyes from his as the radiance of his hands infused my body, sending warm shivers down my spine as he buttoned my blouse.

  "Thanks," I whispered. My voice caught in my throat, recalling other times when this would have happened a lot differently.

  "Anytime." He smiled down at me, stepping closer, until all of me was caught in the orbit of his heat. My cheeks flushed, my lips parted... and a flash of movement in the corner of my eye broke the moment.

  At the end of the corridor stood Gage, glowering like a thunder cloud as he turned away.

  Chapter Twelve

  My home was covered in a fine layer of dust. I spotted a cobweb still in mid-construction above the television in the living room, with a fat spider clinging to the middle. "Begone," I whispered, waving my fingers until it vanished. Dust motes hung in the air around us, disturbed by our sudden materialisation. That was thanks to Evan who insisted I save my power. The air smelled
stale, and large, white sheets covered my furniture. It was just like the day I first arrived, carrying little more than a key and a scrap of paper with the address.

  "Seren and Astra didn't know when you were coming back," Evan said, noting my frown at the covers. "They packed up the best they could."

  "In case I never returned," I finished, not needing an answer. Evan didn't give one. We both knew what the score was. I disappeared and no one expected to ever see me again. I wondered what I thought about while I was captive. Was I afraid? I knew I would have missed everyone. Did I think about Evan while I was gone? Part of me was still grateful my only memories of that time were what I saw played right out of my head, at the same time as everyone else. I didn't have a chance, nor the will, to delve any further into the subject during my private time.

  "Can you get the thing?" asked Evan as he crossed to the windows. He pulled aside one curtain just a fraction and surveyed the outside.

  "I don't actually know where it is," I admitted.

  "Best hurry. We don't want to be here too long."

  "Something wrong?"

  "I don't know. Probably just anxious, given the circumstances. You best find whatever it is as fast as possible."

  I turned away from him, wondering where to look first. I should have asked the horologican for a better clue than simply the images of my house before it ended with my finding the book. I should have asked it to pinpoint a location. For all I knew, it could have been buried six feet beneath the house, or hidden in the rafters, or behind a false wall. I should have asked for more time too, so Seren could have prepared a location spell for me. At least, I had the foresight to grab my divining crystal from my room before we shimmered. "I'm not sure how long this will take," I told him as I reached into my pocket. My fingertips grazed the cool crystal and I tugged at the silver chain, pulling it out.