Banished (15 page)

She had people she needed to talk to and had no place to offer us to sleep. Aiden, with his brothers and dad gone, had more than enough space and so we piled into Lolita and with the lure of hot
showers and comfortable beds in the offing, I pointed my little car’s nose towards Kensington.

To be honest, I am so tired and keyed up I can’t think straight any more. So Aiden’s banter keeps me awake and smiling as we drive through London’s deserted streets to the
Garrett house. The expanse of Hyde Park looms next to us and I catch glimpses of it through the fence.

There are shadows moving within shadows in the park. I slow down to peer in, but right now all I want is to get somewhere warm and safe where we won’t be attacked by strange creatures.

Lolita responds to my touch as I speed up again. I don’t know what’s in the park, but it’s keeping pace with us. I try not to let it freak me out as I’ve managed to keep
my eyes on the deserted roads for most of the journey. The traffic lights mostly play along, but I charge through any amber lights, refusing to slow down or stop.

Whatever’s keeping pace with us can’t leave the confines of the park, I realize. I glance quickly to catch sight of it as it falls behind us. In the faint light I glimpse shiny black
flanks, legs and hooves that clip fire from the ground.

While Aiden chats to Thorn about why he was left behind when most of the pack went to Edinburgh, I ponder whether I saw a large black horse loose in Hyde Park or something much more sinister.
Night mares are mythical entities that manifest as black horses. They ride storms, distributing bad dreams to the susceptible. I hope I haven’t just seen one.

Aiden’s neighbourhood is quiet and we drive into an underground garage after he keys us in via an intricate-looking alarm system. He doesn’t bother showing us the rest of the house
and just leads us to two spare bedrooms opposite each other. Each room has its own bathroom and, after shutting the door, I strip my clothes off without thought and stumble into the shower, where I
almost fall asleep leaning against the wall.

The bed is as soft and comfortable as Aiden promised and I get a solid four hours in before Thorn wakes me up with a cup of coffee at half past seven. He looks nauseous at the smell of the stuff
and hands it to me as if it’s a bomb. I can’t help but laugh softly and he flames red.

‘The wolf is making breakfast,’ he says, looking worried.

‘I’m sure he knows how to look after his guests,’ I say, pushing my hair out of my face. ‘You’re looking better.’

And he is. The cut above his brow has faded to a red line and I notice that he moves his arm and shoulder more easily and overall he just looks more awake and alert. His shoulders are square and
there’s a determined glint to his eyes that I like.

‘I slept well.’ He touches the cut above his brow gingerly. ‘But then I also had a good nurse yesterday, so thank you, again, for helping me.’

I wave my hand. ‘Glad you’re healing. I was worried Aiden and I would have to carry you into battle.’ I smile so he knows I’m teasing and I’m relieved when he
smiles back. It’s still not up to full wattage, but it’s enough to make me aware of the fact that he’s in my room and I’m only wearing a very short T-shirt under the
duvet.

‘Give me ten minutes, then I’ll see you in the kitchen,’ I say, raising my eyebrows meaningfully at him, waiting for him to move. But he hesitates and, when I follow his gaze,
he’s staring at my accidentally exposed thigh. I bite down on mortification and brazen it out. I’m sure that he’s seen half-naked girls in the past – and seeing a bit of
flesh first thing in the morning can’t be a bad start to the day, right?

‘Thorn? I need you to leave the room now so I can get changed.’ I just about manage to keep my voice level and not squeak at him.

‘Oh! Of course. I was just . . .’ He nods and grabs for the cup. ‘. . . Waiting for you to finish so I can take this. I’ll see you in the kitchen.’

I take the opportunity to have another luxurious shower and this time I even stay awake. I rummage in my backpack and find some wrinkled but clean clothes. My beauty regime is appalling and
I’ve forgotten to pack a brush, so I finger-comb the tangles and I end up looking as if I’ve been pulled through a bush backwards. Grimacing at myself in the mirror, I pull the uneven
strands away from my face and secure them with a hairclip so that they can’t bother me during the day. The look does my pale face and freckles no favours. But, to be honest, I don’t
really care all that much. I just need food and lots of it. I remembered to charge my phone as I fell into bed a few hours ago and I check it for any messages. There is none. I sit on my bed and
dial Megan, Marc and Kyle’s numbers. They all go straight to voicemail. Next I try Uncle Andrew, then Aunt Letitia. Her phone rings for ages before an answering machine kicks in. That’s
not happened before so I leave her a rambling message and hang up.

I pick my way through the house, using my nose to lead me to the kitchen.

‘You smell lovely this morning. No thunder and no pepper,’ Aiden says as he hands me a plate and gestures for me to help myself from the spread on the kitchen counter.

‘Thanks,’ I say, giving him a smile. ‘Some kind soul left some classy shower gels for me to use.’

‘Must have been my brother Shaun’s girlfriend,’ Aiden says. ‘Occasionally she attempts to girlify us and dumps cologne and smelly soaps on us.’

He looks so unamused by the thought that smelly soaps are even in his house that I laugh out loud. It’s only when I crunch into the toast that I realize how hungry I am. Both boys, our
plight, missing families and weird goings-on are forgotten as I duck my head and devour my breakfast. What can I say? I think better on a full stomach.

‘It looks like you needed that,’ Thorn says after I finish my first plateful of food and another coffee. It’s still raining outside and the news reports are all about severe
flooding and storm warnings.

‘I did. I felt hollow inside.’ I lean back in my chair. ‘Have you heard from your family?’ I ask Aiden as he downs another cup of tea.

His cheerful facade fades. ‘Not a word. I rang my mum in Australia and she’s not heard from my dad. We both rang around some friends and got nothing.’

‘I can’t get hold of anyone either.’ I hold up my phone. ‘This may as well be a brick.’

‘If they are in the Otherwhere,’ Thorn says, pushing a bit of breakfast pancake around on his plate, ‘it’s likely that they can’t get in touch.’

I sit back in surprise. That didn’t even occur to me. ‘But all of them?’ I ask him dubiously. ‘Even my Aunt Letitia, who never goes anywhere?’

Aiden looks intrigued. ‘Maybe she has safety protocols in place. She must know the Manor’s been attacked – she could’ve taken steps to keep herself safe.’

I shake my head, not liking the idea. ‘It makes no sense. She never leaves her place. Ever. It’s like she’s agoraphobic, or something. So even with everyone else not answering their phones, she should at least be contactable.’

Jamie, I know, is not available because he’s in the jungle somewhere teaching government officials how to track and survive monsters. And you can’t do that unless you’re
completely cut off from civilization. And I don’t even know which government officials he’s training!

‘My mum is getting a flight back to London as soon as the bush plane bringing monthly supplies shows up. She’ll catch a lift and get to Sydney so she should be here by the end of the
week. Hopefully my dad will have been in touch by then or she’ll kill him.’

Thorn looks horrified and I sort of hope that Aiden isn’t being literal. He sees our expressions, though, and laughs.

‘Not actually kill. Maybe maim a bit.’

‘Oh that’s much better.’ They’re joking again but I’m starting to feel sick with anxiety. ‘Who else can we talk to about what’s going on in Alba?’
I ask them both. ‘Who besides Olga will know this stuff?’

‘The guys who run the Fae Holds, for sure,’ Aiden offers.

‘Or the trolls.’ Thorn looks at me. ‘We should speak to the trolls.’

‘What do you want to meet trolls for?’ Aiden asks him dubiously. ‘They like eating humans.’

I’m embarrassed to admit this but I really should have thought of talking to the trolls first. Their information network is large and if you sift through enough rumours, you get a kernel
of truth, or so Jamie’s told me on more than one occasion.

To cover up for being caught out being dumb, I grimace at Aiden. ‘Really? How old are you? Three?’

I don’t enjoy the scowl he sends me and I busy myself having more coffee.

‘Are there any important bridges in London?’ Thorn asks us, unaware of my discomfort or Aiden’s annoyance.

‘Plenty,’ I answer after chewing a piece of toast. ‘And we have to find out where they’re staying now, because they tend to move. A lot.’

Aiden looks unhappy. ‘I don’t know much about trolls.’

I shrug, pretending nonchalance. ‘Not many people do. I’ve never met any myself but I know they exist. Some of the legends are true, after all.’ I can’t help but raise my eyebrows at him in a pointed fashion.

‘Finding out about the wolves must’ve been the highlight of your past year, right?’ he says with a grin. ‘I mean, how can it not be? We are all super-attractive, we have
killer instincts, we are good providers and we know how to fight. Unlike the faeries, who sit in their bowers, composing ballads and singing songs of woe, losing their kingdoms left and
right.’

I didn’t expect Thorn to have a quick temper, or that he’d take what Aiden said as an insult. A blade, a silver sickle, no more than three inches long, presses delicately
against Aiden’s throat.

‘Be careful, wolf, of how you speak about your betters. There are still places in the Otherwhere where they hunt your kind for sport.’

Aiden’s eyes go ice blue and a low rumble starts in his chest. He lifts his hand and pushes the blade away from his throat with some trouble.

‘Do not try me, prince. I offered you hospitality for the night. Under my roof no harm can come to you, but once we are out there, you’d better watch your step.’

‘Are you both utterly insane?’ I’m disgusted with both of them. ‘After everything and knowing we are in a world of trouble, this is how you choose to act? Like spoiled
children. Let me tell you this: by acting like infants we’re not going to get anywhere. We present as weak and I don’t like it. You follow my lead for now and if you’re not happy,
then feel free to leave or, rather, not follow, because I’m not going to worry about keeping your asses in line.’

The silence in the kitchen is absolute. I can almost hear my own heart pounding. I watch Thorn and Aiden stare at each other across the kitchen table. The tension is so thick I
could cut it with a butter knife.

I’m about to stand up and hit them both, but my mobile rings and I jerk with fright. I grab to answer it, not recognizing the number.

‘Hello?’ I say into the quiet room.

‘Are you safe?’ It’s Olga. She sounds tired but her voice is soft, as if she’s trying not to draw attention to herself.

I look at the two guys who have not stopped bristling at each other. ‘Sort of,’ I say. ‘Why do you ask?’

‘The Hold in North London has been razed to the ground. There are reports coming in from other Holds about attacks and the Free Fae are on the run. It seems that whatever is happening in
Alba has spilled over into the Frontier.’

‘Shit.’

My eloquence surprises both boys enough that they stare at me rather than glare at each other. I hold the phone away from my ear and hiss at them. ‘You guys get to out-macho each other
later. Right now, there’s trouble. Put the knife down, Thorn. We don’t have time for this.’ I put Olga on speakerphone. ‘Okay, we’re all here now. Talk to
us.’

Olga keeps her report brief. Of the five Holds, three were attacked during the night by gangs of chimera goblins. In some cases Fae were let go to spread word of the attacks but several were
taken prisoner and, horrifyingly, two Hold host families were murdered before their guests. One Hold was burned to the ground.

‘What happens to the Fae that are here now? With no safe Holds, where are they going?’ This comes from Aiden, who suddenly looks mature and capable. ‘I’m happy to offer
them our farm out in Hertfordshire. As my dad’s not here, I’ll take it on me to extend our hospitality to the Fae until we can figure out how to help them further. There’s a big
forest that’s looked after by our warden. They should be safe there until they can travel back to Alba.’

‘That is generous of you, Aiden. Thank you. I’ll speak to Lord Elias, who contacted me a few hours ago. I’m due to meet him shortly. All routes back to Alba, even the lesser
known paths are blocked, either by redcaps or sorcerers. The farm you’re offering may be the only way to keep these Fae safe.’

Thorn mutters something under his breath that sounds close to a curse but then he holds out a hand to Aiden, who shrugs and takes it without a word. They shake hands and I wisely decide to keep
my mouth shut.

‘I’ll tell our warden to expect the kin. There are camping facilities on the farm too and fresh water. Plenty of food. I think they’ll be okay.’

‘Have any humans been harmed?’ I ask Olga. ‘That we know of, that is?’

There’s noise in the background, someone talking and then the sound of Olga moving away. ‘It’s all been contained, pretty much. If any humans have been harmed, we’ve not
been told.’

‘Does SDI know about this?’ I use the abbreviation of the abbreviation for Her Majesty’s Department of Supernatural Defence and Intervention, the Spook Squad.

‘It’s been reported. They’ve sent a liaison officer who looks younger than you do to help out where he can. They are being cautious at the moment, aware of the various accords
between the humans and Fae, and don’t want to step on toes.’

Thorn leans towards me as Aiden talks to Olga. ‘Who are these government people?’

‘I’ve not met any of them myself but my family really doesn’t like them. They seem to like interfering and making things difficult for us.’

Before Thorn can respond, Aiden returns with the phone, and Olga’s back on the line, all business. ‘Listen, you lot. I need you to tell me what your plans are going forward. I am not
going to be able to hang around. I’m needed here, organizing a few things first. Are you guys going to be okay until I can meet up with you again?’