Eddie Lancaster Box Set 2, page 38
part #4 of Eddie Lancaster Series
‘I need to bind us, so you’ll have the power to drain the building. You will essentially be using me like a giant battery,’ he said. He wrapped his fingers around the blade and then ran it through his fist. Radiant red blood drizzled down and dripped onto the dining table. Margie would be having a fit if she was still alive. If she was still alive I doubt that Nick would ever have been allowed to set foot in her house. He held out his unwounded hand and I presented my own palm.
‘Won’t drawing power from you kill me? I mean, I can’t hold your magic,’ I said. He ran the blade along my palm lightly and I winced as a long gash opened up. It hurt a lot more than I thought it would. The blade burned with a molten fire. Nick pressed his wound to mine and we enclosed our hands round each other’s. It was like becoming blood brothers with a childhood friend. Not that I ever had any. Not real friends anyway.
If I thought the blade burned it was nothing compared to this. I actually grunted in pain as it felt like lava itself was being poured into my bloodstream. ‘It will be over in a moment.’ His words did nothing to soothe me. I’d relax when it was over. Our mingled blood ran down my arm and looped around my wrist. The blood seemed to seep into my flesh and then the flesh raised in a red scar that encircled my wrist like a bracelet. Once the loop was complete the pain was gone. It didn’t fade it just stopped. I looked at Nick and saw that he had a blood bracelet on his wrist as well. He released my hand and I saw that my palm was now healed. There was no sign that I’d ever been cut.
‘My magic will not harm you because it will never be truly inside you,’ he said as he cleaned the blood off him with one of my tea towels. When he was finished he tossed it to me so I could do the same. Another thing that Margie would freak out about. ‘You’ll basically be channelling me. Go ahead. Draw on my power now to show yourself that you’re in no danger.’
It was a strange sensation having Nick’s power available to me. It was like being hooked up to a battery that I could access with just a flip of the switch. I flipped that switch and drew Nick’s power into me. It was like getting drunk incredibly fast. I felt it flowing into me gradually at first, travelling through me, making me giddy. I enjoyed the sensation so I widened the channel. I lost control as it poured into every available space inside me. I felt like I was flying, soaring through the clouds. I saw my veins glowing with orangey-red radiance beneath my skin. I felt… nothing. It was gone in a flash and I collapsed to the floor like I weighed a hundred tonnes. I suddenly felt so empty and frail and fragile.
‘I had to cut you off, you were getting a bit eager,’ Nick said.
‘Oh, I uh…’ He offered me his hand and then hauled my up into one of the chairs. ‘I couldn’t stop it.’
Nick nodded. ‘I know the feeling. Quite a rush.’ He sat down with me and gripped my forearm. The weakness left me and I felt a little stronger.
‘Thanks,’ I said.
‘So, now you see that you’re in no real danger. I can cut you off at any time.’
‘Yeah. I see that now.’
‘Are you ready to get on with this?’ he asked me. His eyes were completely serious now, no playful glint. It was time for business.
‘Let’s do it,’ I said. It was time to teach Clara why she shouldn’t have fucked with me.
Chapter Twenty-Five
‘I never thought I’d be back here,’ I said to Gabe. We were standing in the road staring up at the AOC building. Less than twenty-four hours ago I’d been a prisoner in there and now here I was about to walk back in. If Clara was smart she’d arrest me at once. She’d notice the binding spell and try to break it. Nick said it wouldn’t be too hard to break it once I was inside the building because his magic would be useless in its conventional sense. Its only function would be to boost my ability. So, if Nick had misjudged Clara’s character and she did arrest me then I was a little bit fucked. Although it was unlikely that Nick would leave me to rot in there. Not after all that stuff he’d said about family. He’d come for me. Wouldn’t he?
‘You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,’ Gabe said. I had wanted to bring all the vampires, but Gabe was reluctant to endanger anyone other than himself. He also pointed out that he was the only one who could actually enter the building. Nick said he was certain Clara would not attack anyway so extra muscle was not a requirement. ‘We can go back to Maidstone where we belong. Clara will not touch you as long as you don’t get involved in this war.’ I could hear the desperation in his voice.
It was tempting to go back, but I had to go through with it. I had to show Clara that I was no pushover. That she could not go about doing as she pleased. People were not her pawns to be locked up or done whatever with. She was not in charge and as long as I had any power she never would be.
‘She already touched me. She kidnapped me, remember? And she did that whilst I was in Maidstone. Today she answers for that.’ I took a calming breath and then reached out to Nick’s power. I didn’t take any I touched it to make sure it was still there. It would be incredibly embarrassing if I went in and was unable to siphon anything because the bind had broken accidentally. That wasn’t going to happen, though.
I walked towards the building. It looked calm, almost tranquil. There were no corpses on the ground. No sign that there ever had been. No flashing red lights. No guards on sentry. Not on the outside anyway. I knew there’d be security swarming the building on the other side of the glass. Clara would have them on red alert. She’d want everything to appear calm even though it was anything but. As I walked up the path it suddenly occurred to me that a smart person would have removed myself and Gabe from the approved persons list meaning we wouldn’t be able to get in. How could Nick have overlooked that? I mean, I overlook stuff all the time so I’m used to missing the occasional detail, but Nick’s supposed to a be an evil genius. I guessed he believed Clara would not have banned us from the building. Maybe it wasn’t possible.
I reached the door and entered the building unimpeded. Surprised would be an understatement. There was the grand total of two guards in the lobby and one receptionist. I approached the desk and smiled warmly at the lady sitting behind it.
‘Yes?’ she asked, pretending she didn’t know who I was.
‘Eddie Lancaster to see Clara Winters,’ I said smoothly. She didn’t even blink.
‘Do you have an appointment?’ she said. She really was going to play dumb.
‘No, but I think she’ll see me.’ I gave her a cheeky wink. She completely ignored it. I obviously didn’t have my granddad’s charm.
‘Well, I am afraid that Miss Winters is overseeing a hearing at the moment. If you take a seat I shall let her know you are here the moment she becomes available,’ the receptionist said professionally. I was done with whatever game this was.
‘Nah, I’ll just pop in and see her,’ I said.
As usual, Gabe displayed tremendous initiative. The receptionist singled to the guards, but they were lying on the floor unconscious before they could take a step. Gabe was faster than even I’d realised. I also noticed that he hadn’t killed them. That was good. Clara was the only villain in this building. As Gabe strolled back to me I turned back to the now terrified receptionist.
‘In the usual room?’ I pointed in the direction of the trial room I’d been in before. She nodded her trembling little head. ‘Gabe knocked her out by smashing her head into her desk. That was gonna hurt when she woke up.
I marched down to the trial room before anyone could intercept me. I didn’t allow myself the time to get nervous. I knew that if I stopped to consider things I’d only increase my chances of turning back. That could not happen. I grabbed both doors and threw them open. Gabe shot in and dispatched of the bailiffs, eliciting several screams from the packed room. The top desk was lined with dynasts and the stands were ready to burst. It looked like parliament when the MPs have to discuss their own salaries. Standing room only. Every pair of eyes was on me. I noticed that Shirley was not up there. Shame. I liked her. She was about the only one I did like. Clara watched me silently. She knew that she had a big decision to make. I really hoped that Nick was right and she didn’t arrest me. There were enough sorcerers in this room to more than overpower me, especially since I had no real power and they were all full of working magic. I stopped in the centre of the room. Whoever was on trial hadn’t been brought out yet. Gabe stood by my side. The room was buzzing with whispers which stopped the moment Clara spoke.
‘Eddie, have you come back because you have seen reason?’ Clara said. Her words stunned me to silence. The audacity of her. How could she sit there and still claim to be superior? I wasn’t silent for long. My answer was a long, loud laugh. I must have looked quite insane to everybody present, just standing in the centre of the room laughing like a hyena.
‘I have seen reason, Clara. Indeed I have,’ I said. I could tell that she knew this was not going to go her way. ‘I’ve come to show you that I will not be bullied. I will not be caged like an animal. I will not be subdued. And from now on you cannot ever again consider me your ally.’
I didn’t wait for her reply. Nick had warned me not to let her talk and I heeded his advice. I knelt down and planted my palm on the wooden floor.
‘What’s he doing?’ I heard a man ask.
I tapped into Nick’s power and as I felt the rush that I’d felt just a few hours ago I got to work. I didn’t let the magic flood me this time. I closed my mind and began the siphon. This time it worked. It was unusual to say the least. I had magic coming at me from different angles, filling me with radiant energy. It was like electricity passing through at a ridiculous speed. My whole body was shaking. Through my eye lids I could see lights flashing. I could hear the sorcerers shouting in agitation.
‘Eddie, no!’ Clara screamed. ‘Dynasts, break the defence spell. Now!’ I’d never heard Clara sound so panicked before. I relished in it.
I felt them remove themselves from the spell one by one. Bit by but the power I was sucking ebbed away until there was nothing left to take. I stopped drawing from Nick and rose to me feet slowly. I could feel my own magic now, fully usable. I was no longer so indefensible. Though I was horribly outnumbered.
‘You have gone too far, Eddie,’ Clara snapped. She leaped over her desk and almost flew down to the floor several feet below. She landed in a squat like Superman always did in the films when he came storming down to earth. I almost admired it. But I still hated her for what she’d done to me. ‘You shouldn’t have come back here because this is not a fight you can win,’ she said threateningly as she rose to her full height.
‘Perhaps he can’t.’ Nick’s voice sounded a moment before he appeared. He materialised in front of me providing the perfect shield. ‘But I think I am more than capable of taking you on.’
For a second I thought Clara was going to run. Her face crinkled like a terrified child, but then she hardened. Her whole body straightened out and she seemed to grow an inch or two. ‘You should have stayed dead,’ she said vehemently. Her hatred for Nick was on par with my own for Rachel.
‘So should you. Don’t worry though, love. This time you will.’
Chapter Twenty-Six
The other six dynasts stood and walked down to stand behind Clara, no showy jumps for them. Nick waited gracefully while they did so. Those in the stands remained still. Looking up at them I could see how unsure they were. Several of them were looking about for some kind of guidance. Were they supposed to help or simply watch? I guessed there was no protocol for this situation. There probably would be after today.
The only dynasts I recognised were Arthur Winters and Sam. The other four women were completely new to me. Every single dynast looked like they were shitting themselves. I probably would be too if I was standing on their side of the room. To be honest I wasn’t too confident in my security even on Nick’s side. There was only one of him and seven of them. Considerably more if the audience joined in.
‘Are you going to hide behind all these people, Clara?’ Nick asked, spreading his arms wide to gesture the sorcerers around the room.
‘I’m not hiding behind anybody. We stand together. That’s what an alliance does,’ she replied curtly. Arthur raised his chin proudly.
‘Do you think they’ll save you?’ said Nick, amused. Clara tensed, ready to fight. I stepped forward but Nick raised a hand to stop me. ‘No, Eddie. I can handle this easily enough on my own.’
I stopped moving. To be honest I didn’t want to fight all those sorcerers anyway. Nick would probably enjoy it more, so it was best to leave them all to him. Not to mention the fact that he couldn’t die, and I was rather precariously mortal.
‘Gabe, you should go,’ I said. He looked at me as if I was an idiot.
‘I’m not going anywhere,’ he said. ‘If you stay, I stay.’
‘If something happens to me then you need to survive to run things in Maidstone. You need to go home. I’m in no danger whilst Nick is around.’ I was lying. I didn’t care about the line of succession for Maidstone. I’d grown fond of Gabe and I knew that I couldn’t guarantee his safety in the battle that was about to begin, and I couldn’t expect Nick to look after him and me. Gabe seemed to accept my reasoning however.
‘Call me as soon as your safe,’ he said in a perfect dad voice. Nobody would have believed that I was the older of the two. I nodded and then he sped out of the room. Just Nick and me now.
‘Eddie, you’re on the wrong side of the room,’ Arthur said, staring at me imploringly. I stared back hatefully, though my hate was not for him but for his daughter.
‘I’m on the side she put me on,’ I spat, pointing angrily at Clara. Her eyes flicked to me for a moment and she sighed.
‘There isn’t time for your melodrama, Eddie. There are far more important matters to deal with,’ she said scathingly.
‘Go deal with them then.’ I sounded like a sulky teenager, but I didn’t care. I was done with Clara Winters and her important matters.
‘Can we please get on with this?’ Nick groaned. He suddenly exploded in a cloud of grey smoke that expanded across the whole room. I heard screams all about me and saw the sorcerers in the stands running about aimlessly. The smoke barrelled into the sorcerers sending them sprawling across the place. It forced its way down throats, choking many people. I heard doors crashing open, feet trampling about. Clara was shouting for order and calmness, but she went ignored. Flashes of light shot around as people launched spells at the smoke pointlessly. I ducked for cover, erecting a bubble shield around me before one of the hastily-launched spells hit me. The seven dynasts came into view. They were moving quickly protected by shields of their own. They positioned themselves in a circle around the place where Nick had been standing, where the main bulk of the smoke now was. Clara nodded and they all shot a thin string of light at the smoke. Each light string was a different colour creating a rainbow effect as they all joined in the middle. Different people have different coloured magic. There doesn’t seem to be any reasoning behind why a person’s magic is a certain colour. Mine’s green. Though some spells can come out in different colours. It’s all very random really.
Out of the smoke came an angry cry as the rainbow of magic grew in size. The arms of smoke that had spread across the room shot back inwards and it quickly solidified back into Nick’s form. It was already too late for some. Many sorcerers were lying dead in the stands, the rest had managed to flee. I watched the last of them exit hastily.
‘That was impressive,’ said Nick, looking around at the dynasts surrounding him.
‘We’ve been practicing ever since your appearance outside,’ Sam said boastfully.
‘Well I hope you’ve got more tricks to delight me with because otherwise I’m going to leave this place very disappointed, and I can assure you that will not end well for you.’
I almost laughed but managed not to. I didn’t want to draw any attention to myself. Like I said, I wanted no part in this fight. Not unless they managed to overpower Nick in which case I’d try and help. They were hardly likely to do that now that there were only seven of them. Then I remembered that they dynasts were all linked to their covens. They could access their power at any time like I could access Nicks. That meant that Nick wasn’t facing seven sorcerers, he was facing seven covens. My confidence in him dipped dramatically. I looked around at the nearest door in case I needed to make a hasty exit.
The dynasts were well coordinated. At Clara’s signal they all launched their attacks in unison. They each sent several bright spikes of magic through the air at Nick. He raised his fist and they all froze mere inches from his person. ‘Not a great follow up to your last trick.’ He spread out his fingers in one sharp motion. The spikes flew back, converging into a wall of power which collided with the dynasts and sent them flying through the air. They each crashed down to the wooden floor with horrible cracks and thuds. Clara alone managed to stay on her feet though she did slide backwards across the floor. She didn’t wait for the others to get back up, she thrust both her hands out and a blue streak of lightning bolted at Nick. He raised his hand lazily and a shimmering black bolt forked out to meet hers. Sparks flew off as the two spells met. The black bolt was slowly eating away at the blue one. There was no way Clara was going to win this. Suddenly five more bolts joined the fray. As they collided with Nick’s black one his bolt was eaten in seconds. The spells hit him and he cried out as he was sent smashing through the seating and up into the stands. I scuttled backwards well out of their eyelid lest they turn their ire on me.
