Who's Afraid?, page 9
I gulped.
‘Would bullet points do? Or do you need excruciating detail?’
His voice softened when he said: ‘It’s extremely important you tell me everything.’
I looked over at Dr Kikuchi and she nodded solemnly. So I told the whole sordid tale, from Mari and my investigations to my foolish arrival at their house. I gave them the details of my mother’s secrets and everything she’d had me believe. Keeping my eyes fixed firmly on the unusually low ceiling, I told them every word said, where I landed every blow and vice versa. I even managed to keep my voice neutral as I spoke about the sexual assault at the hands of my half-brother. By the time I got to the end, I was mildly surprised to find silent tears running down my cheeks. Wiping them away seemed cowardly. I left them. A silence stretched through the room and I wanted desperately to break it. I didn’t want to look at either of their faces, these two strange people I had just met. I wanted to look anywhere but at their faces.
‘On a scale of one to Hulk, how mad were you when I bailed?’ I asked Lorcan as I turned to look out the window. I frowned. It was an incredibly cloudy day outsi—Oh. My God.
‘WE’RE IN THE SKY!’ I screamed, bolting upright in bed.
Desperately, I glanced around what I had thought to be a room and recognised what it really was. A plane. It was the interior of a plane. In my pain and drug-addled state I’d failed to associate the circular windows with the only place you find them: on commercial aircrafts. They ran down the length of both sides of the plane, which was considerably smaller than anything I had flown in before. There were half a dozen seats gratuitously spread about the aircraft and another bed identical to mine at the front.
‘Holy shit,’ I said, finally tuning into the steady thrum of the powerful engines.
It was a private plane and those only came in one variety: wealthy.
‘Er, yes, I guess we should have mentioned that,’ said Dr Kikuchi.
‘Where the hell are you taking me?’ I couldn’t keep the alarm out of my voice.
‘Home,’ said Lorcan. ‘Dundee.’
I gaped at him.
‘That’s … the flight’s too long. I’ll never make it back before the next transformation and—’ The realisation hit me. ‘You need to get off the plane! Now! You can’t be trapped on here with me when I shift, it—’
Lorcan gently grabbed my shoulder and pushed me back down on to the bed. ‘This is a private plane belonging to the Treize. Not only is it fitted out for situations like these, it also flies like a demon. See over there.’
He nodded behind me to a solid metal door I hadn’t seen before. I squirmed around in the bed to get a full look at it.
‘Aye.’
‘That’s a cell strong enough to hold any full-grown werewolf. It’s more than enough to hold you if we need it, which we won’t. We’ll touch down in Dundee exactly one hour before sunset,’ he said, glancing at his watch. ‘I have measures in place that will see you as far away from harming people as physically possible.’
Lorcan looked at me for a moment before reaching into his pocket and pulling out an iPad. ‘Excuse me.’ With that he got up and left.
‘Jeez,’ was all I said.
‘It’s not you,’ said Dr Kikuchi. ‘The Ihis are a big priority and there are people who are going to want to know what happened as soon as possible.’
‘He’s not exactly Mr Smiley. Or Mr In-Depth Explainy.’
‘Not for a while,’ she said, adjusting the sheets around me.
‘Did you find me on the island?’
‘Me? No, no, I hate the water. Lorcan tracked you down and found you as you were shifting back this morning. Said you were out of your mind with pain, dehydration and whatnot. He brought you to me straight away because I’m a specialist in this type of thing.’
‘A werewolf specialist?’
‘Among other things. I’m a Paranormal Practitioner. I operate within the standard hospital system usually, except I have a special set of skills and client base.’
She’d lost me at ‘other things’. What other things could there be? How much more didn’t I know besides, heck, everything?
‘Now, dear, I’ve given you quite a bit of morphine but your werewolf metabolism is burning it off very quickly. Is it all right if I give you some more? You’re conscious now so it seems prudent to ask your permission.’
On schedule, a sudden yet somewhat muted spasm of pain rolled through me almost as if it was saying, Hey, remember me? I’ve made your life hell for the past few days, kid.
‘Doc, whether it’s morphine or heroin – hit me with all you got.’
After fiddling with my IV, Dr Kikuchi gave me more water to drink and, by the last sip, I could already feel myself being pulled under.
The tinny sound of rain hitting a metal roof and jazz music playing softly in the background was what I awoke to. I was lying in the back seat of a car and Lorcan was at the wheel. No, not a car, a jet boat. I was sprawled across a long, leather seat inside the enclosed cabin of a high-powered jet boat. We were pounding across the ocean at a rapid rate.
‘Hey,’ I growled.
‘Hey,’ he said without turning around.
‘For future reference, waking up in the back seat of a boat with you driving me into the abyss is not OK.’
He looked out the window and up at the sky. It was overcast so it was difficult to tell exactly what time of day it was. There were enough shadows to say it was late afternoon.
‘Oh.’
‘I couldn’t wait until you woke up. I needed to move you somewhere safe before the next transformation.’
I slumped against the seat at the thought of the next transformation and having to go through that torture for a third time.
‘You haven’t got a smoke, have you?’
‘No,’ he replied with a finality that communicated his thoughts on smoking.
‘Christ.’
‘There’s only one more. Then you have a month to learn and better prepare for the next phase of the moon.’
‘Really, a whole month? Gee, that seems like forever between the spates of excruciating physical pain. This will be a breeze.’ My voice dripped with sarcasm like honey off a spoon.
He said nothing.
‘So there’re three nights.’
Lorcan looked back at me with a question on his face.
‘I was wondering how many there would be,’ I explained. ‘It’s not like the movies is it, where there’s just one night of the full moon?’
‘No.’
‘Figured. Usually the moon is full for a few nights in a row, not just the one. I guess three is better than four or five.’
‘Technically, the moon we see is never full. It’s a common misconception. The scientific definition of a full moon lasts for only a second, literally one moment in time when it’s exactly opposite the sun. That happened last night.’
I was slightly puzzled by this.
‘What we on Earth perceive as a full moon can last anywhere from two to five days a month. That instant when the moon is perfectly full occurred towards three a.m. last night. The pull is strong enough on either side of that to affect werewolf transformation, hence the three days.’
Everything that happened in that past few days had me feart. Yet it was this – what I didn’t know about the moon and the Ihis and my hairy condition – that had me scared the most. There was too much to process.
‘Where are you taking me?’
‘Your idea about the island was a good one, albeit poorly executed. I’m stealing it.’
Island? There weren’t any islands off the coast of Dundee. There were a few closer within the River Tay, but I could tell we were well out through the seaway now. The nearest islands would be south, past St Andrews way. Unless …
I hunched down and peered out through the clear glass at the front of the boat. There, like a lone soldier standing on an open battlefield, sat Bell Rock Lighthouse.
If you had never seen it before it was a bizarre sight. An endless expanse of grey sea spanned on either side of it, while the structure sat abruptly in the centre of it all. It seemed like an impossible feat of engineering, to have a lighthouse this far out – some twelve nautical miles – without a single land structure supporting it. It wasn’t until you got closer that you saw black rocks jutting out at the base. At high tide you couldn’t see them at all, it merely looked like a pillar of concrete floating off the Scottish coast. However that’s what Bell Rock Lighthouse had been built on: a deadly hidden bed of jagged rocks, which had claimed many a ship in their time. Every local knew the tale of Bell Rock. Built in the early 1800s, it was one of the first lighthouses ever constructed and was an integral beacon during both World Wars. It was de-manned in the eighties and since then a handful of locals had claimed it was haunted.
‘It’s isolated and secure. Perfect for our purposes,’ said Lorcan, following my gaze.
‘Better than Lake Taupo, I suppose.’
‘Yes, but that was quite inventive.’
I grumbled.
Half an hour later, Lorcan and I were negotiating our way over the sharp, wet rocks of Bell Rock Lighthouse. He had got us as close to the building as he could considering the treacherous reef surrounding it. We had moored the boat less than twenty-five metres from our destination and had to take an IRB (inflatable rescue boat) the rest of the way. I had gained some strength from Dr Kikuchi’s care and the rest I’d had on the plane, but I was still hurting. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking and my limbs weren’t as responsive to my commands as they usually were. I was aching all over. The cuts and scrapes and minor broken bones that I had received from my time with the Ihis had mostly healed, miraculously. A werewolf trait, I was told. My right leg spasmed as I was balancing on the last rock before reaching the front stoop of the lighthouse and I lurched downwards.
Lorcan grabbed me just as I was about to land face first.
‘Thanks,’ I said, pulling myself up with his help. The guy had crazy-fast reflexes.
‘We’re almost there.’
I nodded. This gave me little comfort as ‘almost there’ meant my third night of transition was very close. After stumbling the last steps, we came to a stop at a massive black door that marked the only entrance and exit to the lighthouse. A heavy chain, thick with green moss, was linked around the door handle and through a solid latch built into the outer wall of the lighthouse. Lorcan weighed the chain in his hand thoughtfully. With one sudden movement, he yanked it with all his strength. The links broke apart instantly and the chain fell to the wet ground like a discarded snake.
‘Old chain,’ he muttered, pushing the door with the front of his body.
It took two good heaves before it finally budged and we were inside Bell Rock Lighthouse. Gloomy didn’t quite cover it. Everything seemed damp. From the dripping walls to puddles littering the floor, it was clear the old building wasn’t doing a very good job of keeping the elements out. Then again, no one had lived here in years. You never had to worry about upkeep if the place was abandoned. The interior was almost pitch black except for pale light coming from the windows at the top of the 35-metre building. I craned my neck to follow the path of an immense spiral staircase that led up, up and into the unknown.
‘There are rooms up there?’
‘From when it used to be manned,’ replied Lorcan.
I was somewhat amazed at the thought of anyone living here. Alone. Isolated.
‘There’s a dry patch over there,’ said Lorcan, handing me a folded-up mattress. ‘This is for after the change.’
I took it without a word and walked over to the slightly less miserable spot of ground he had pointed out. I laid it down in the far corner and sat on it. Lorcan disappeared out the doorway and, from the soft splashing, I guessed he was retrieving something from the boat. Looking around the circular base of the lighthouse, I couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of despair. Hurriedly, I wiped whatever tears had been forming at the corner of my eyes when Lorcan returned, arms heavy with supplies.
‘So … I’m going to wolf out in here?’
‘Yes,’ he said, bluntly.
‘And what are you going to do?’
‘I’ll be right outside.’
‘The whole time?’
‘The whole time.’
‘Will this place be strong enough to hold me?’
Lorcan patted the wall closest to him and looked at it casually. ‘These walls are made of granite, two metres thick. A rhinoceros wouldn’t be able to get through them. This may have been built over two centuries ago, but it’s impenetrable.’
‘I was thinking more about the door.’ I nodded at the one weakness.
‘The door’s strong enough to hold for tonight,’ he said. ‘I have reinforced steel chains and new anchors to secure to the outside wall. You won’t be getting out.’
I took his word for it.
‘And,’ he continued, ‘It’s the third night of your first transformation sequence. You will be at your weakest.’
Hmph. I certainly felt it.
‘Here,’ he said, walking over and handing me a black towel.
I looked at him, confused.
‘For you to get changed behind.’
‘Oh. Thanks. I’m getting sick of people I don’t know seeing me naked.’
‘I didn’t see … much.’
‘Much?’ I asked, my voice rising unbelievably high.
He met my expression and held it, the corner of his mouth turning up. My mind was racing through all the ways I would prefer for someone who looked like him to see me naked for the first time. It’s funny, unconscious and chained to a tree was most definitely not one of them. I felt my face burning and, after a long moment, he finally turned away to open up a fold-out chair. He reached into the bag once more, then tossed a bottle of water and a white package at me. I caught them both and, after guzzling some water, I peered at the bundle with curiosity. It was a bread roll.
‘You should eat that. It will make you less agitated when you’re in wolf form.’
I unfolded the wrapping, bit into it and wrinkled my nose. ‘Jeez, is the meat of every animal in existence in this?’ I lifted a piece of beef to explore the carnivorous buffet beneath.
Lorcan sighed. ‘Just eat the roll and I’ll start explaining the rest to you quickly.’
I shrugged and took another bite. ‘Explain away.’
‘Tommi, you’ve come into a world you never knew existed.’ He paused for dramatic effect.
‘Obvious, but continue,’ I muttered.
‘This world, the supernatural world, has always been here. It moves in and around the everyday life of humans. There never used to be a structure for it until a few decades before the first Crusades.’
I started counting back in my head. ‘Like … the 1000s? I don’t even know the right abbreviation for that. Back in the 1000s? The thousies?’
‘I don’t think there is an abbreviation for that century but yes.’
I took another bite.
‘For over a thousand years, the supernatural community has been governed by the Treize: a body of thirteen elders with different abilities and interests. The supers, ah, supernatural community, has for the most part never wanted to become an accepted part of human society. Most of them are happily integrated into it anyway. Others live on the outskirts or in isolation. Maintaining secrecy or a silent order has never been a concern of the Treize. Their main aim is to maintain peace amongst our own kind. One of the defining elements of our character is infighting: infighting amongst the various subspecies and even infighting within specific species.’
‘Like werewolf pack versus werewolf pack?’
‘Yes, especially werewolf packs. In fact, with werewolves being the most widespread species amongst the supers, most of the problems stem from them.’
I paused mid-chew at this last piece of information. Magnificent, I thought, I’ve been born into the animalistic brawlers.
‘The Treize are guided in part by the Three – I’ll come to them later. There are two main bodies who operate under the Treize: the Praetorian Guard and Custodians.’
He had picked up a stick and was drawing some sort of umbrella formation for me in the grime, pointing to specific parts to explain the supernatural hierarchy as he got to it.
‘The “P” one sounds ominous.’
Lorcan gave a half-smile. ‘Basically, they’re enforcers: an elite legion of warriors selected to carry out the orders of the Treize. The Custodians, on the other hand, are, say, counsellors. Maybe guardians is a better word.’
‘Aren’t the other ones called P-something guardians?’
‘Praetorian Guard,’ Lorcan corrected. ‘And there’s quite a difference between a Guard and guardians.’
‘What are you?’
‘I’m a Custodian. In fact, I’m your allocated Custodian.’
‘You’re my guardian-slash-counsellor?’
‘As of this morning, yes. When tonight is over and you’ve returned to human form, I’ll work with you on how to control your wolf. I’ll teach you werewolf customs, how to defend yourself and the best ways to utilise your abilities. I’ll also help you come to terms with … this,’ he said, gesturing around him.
I’d finished my roll a while ago. Thankfully, there wasn’t any food still in my mouth as it hung open with the information-bomb Lorcan had dropped on me.
‘How long?’ I whispered.
‘What?’
‘How long do you stay to teach me all of that?’
‘As long as it takes.’
I swallowed even though I had no food left to digest. Almost as a way to distract myself, I asked, ‘Who are the Askari?’
‘You remember,’ he said, leaning back on the chair.
‘Unfortunately, I’ve been remembering every single freakin’ detail since the whole ordeal started.’
‘What about when you’re a wolf?’
‘Yup, when I’m a wolf, when I’m a woman, when I’m a werewolf woman. Everything’s seared right in there.’ I tapped my skull for emphasis.
‘Interesting …’ He looked thoughtful.
‘What? What part?’
