Children of Poseidon: Rann (21 page)

“He’s been here for almost a year,” Maya told him. “That’s one of the reasons Jewel’s come back.”

“Come back?” Fergal frowned at Jewel. “Back from where?”

“I lived in the Indian Ocean,” Jewel said, “since I was banished from the coven.”

“Banished?”

“It’s a long story,” Jewel said. She really didn’t want to go through it again. “I was exiled for a year. I hadn’t come back till now. My mother never had much time for me. I didn’t realize what she’s been doing, though, until Maya came to see me.”

“None of us realized that Kara was practicing forbidden magic so long ago,” Lila screwed her face up. “I let her mentor Maya.”

“She never taught me any dark practices.” Maya sounded disappointed.

Jewel hid a smile before she remembered what Liv had said. “You sensed a trace of death magic?”

Liv shook her head. “Not death magic. Just a faint hint of the same signature your seawitch carried. A sense of a dark master. Nowhere near as strong, though.” A note of relief lightened her voice.

“Dark master. That’s bad.” Fergal considered. “There’s a gap in my memory from a year ago. It covers a couple of years.”

“Before that”—Connor leaned towards him—“do you know what happened to you?”

“I think I was used as a familiar.” Fergal frowned. “For a coven who had problems with an infestation of demons. They had to keep a boundary ward. It took a lot of energy. I think that’s what they used me for. As a magic store for their ward.” He bit his lip. “I think it was in some shanty town. Hot and crowded. It’s really coming back to me now. They kept me in a hut, chained up. Filled with their magic. One of the magic suppressors bound my own magic. Similar to the drugs Kara used.”

Jewel shuddered. She could see her revulsion echoed in the expressions of her newly discovered sisters.

“We need to talk about Alberic.” Annis changed the subject. “We did a brief check on him, after you asked us to find out what he’s been doing for the past couple of years.” She looked at Rann who nodded.

“Go on,” he said. “What did you find?”

“He arrived in London on a flight from Kenya,” Annis said. “But it doesn’t look like he was in Kenya long.”

“Kenya?” Rann frowned. “What was he doing there?”

“Passing through, I think,” Annis said. “But there’s no record of him flying into the country.”

“But—”

“It’s possible he could have been brought by boat,” Annis interrupted. “There are a lot of illegal comings and goings along that coast.”

“He could have come from anywhere.” Rann rubbed his mouth.

“Yes. Anywhere,” Annis agreed. “But suppose he’d been in the Indian Ocean. Suppose he’d come across Seawitch there.”

“That would explain his magic signature?” Rann didn’t sound convinced.

“No.” Liv joined in the conversation. “He’d have had to actively spell her for that.”

“You think he might know where she came from?”

“I think so.” Liv nodded.

“Could he have done this to her?” Rann asked. “Made her catatonic?”

“I don’t know.” Liv pursed her lips. “It takes a huge amount of power. I wouldn’t have thought he had it in him.”

“I’d like to have a chat with him.” Maya glanced round. “Seriously.”

Jewel sighed. Everything seemed to be connected. How? She didn’t have a clue, but she remembered Tamsin’s warning.
I should have paid more attention.

“We need to think about this very carefully.” Lila was always a cautious voice, and Maya opened her mouth as though to interrupt. Lila held up one hand. “We’ve got two major problems here. Kara and Alberic.”

“We have to—”

“Deal with this by the rules,” Lila said firmly.

“But—”

“Most of the problems we have here are because someone was breaking rules all over the place.”

“I don’t know why we’re listening to you,” Maya grumbled. “You’re not even a member of the coven any longer.”

“You know I’m right.” Lila held Maya’s gaze until the younger witch dropped her head.

“I suppose so.”

“So we need to think about Jewel’s circle.”

“Jewel’s circle?” Fergal raised an eyebrow.

“We have to remove Kara,” Jewel told him. “And soon. Apparently it’s my duty as her nearest relative.”

“It would be,” Fergal agreed. “But what’s the hurry?”

“She’s started to seriously practice dark magic,” Jewel said. “We think she’s already killed and is probably planning to kill again. Members of her own coven.”

“Blood magic?” Fergal didn’t sound too surprised. “Tell me exactly what you know?” His voice firmed, and his face took on an expression of authority. Jewel let Maya explain what they had found out about Kara’s pregnancy, and Fergal’s face grew grimmer.

Maya finished the story.

“Who will be in the circle?” He looked at Jewel.

“I’ve got to lead it.” Jewel couldn’t hide the reluctance in her voice. “We’ll have Maya and Lila, of course. We hadn’t thought who else.” She glanced at Annis. “Maybe . . .”

“I’d be pleased to help,” Annis said, “but you should have members of your own coven really.”

“Should I?” Jewel wrinkled her nose doubtfully. This wasn’t something she’d ever seen done.

“It’s best if you do,” Annis assured her.

“Who can we ask?” Jewel looked to Maya for advice since she knew the most about coven business.

“We need at least seven, and the stronger the better.” Maya pursed her lips. “That means Charlie and Maria.”

“Will they do it?” Jewel hadn’t got any sense that they’d be willing to cooperate with Maya.

“They’d better.” Maya frowned at the floor. “No, they will. They must know that things can’t go on like this.”

“What about you?” Jewel looked at Fergal. “You were a member of the coven.”
He must want Kara stopped as much as anyone else.

Fergal’s expression was inscrutable. “If you can wait a couple of days. I can feel the spells wearing off. Lila’s helping. I’ll probably be free of them by tomorrow, but it’s best to be sure. Another day should be okay.”

“Two days?” Maya sounded resigned. “I suppose it’s going to take that long to organise things. And we’ll need at least one more.”

“Are Bill and Rachel Maudley still part of the coven?” Fergal asked.

“Bill is,” Maya said. “Rachel died three years ago. Bill still lives in their old house. With his son.”

“A son?” Feral pursed his lips. “I knew Bill pretty well. I should imagine he’d be willing. And he has a lot more power than he shows.”

“We can ask him.” Maya nodded. “That would give us seven.”

“Right. Tomorrow, we’ll visit him.” Fergal sounded more confident by the minute. Maya scowled. It appeared she wasn’t pleased to have someone else taking charge. She kept quiet, though.

“Could I have a look at Seawitch?” Fergal stood up as though he had no doubt that he’d be given what he wanted. Jewel looked at Rann.

“That’s a good idea. She’s in Maya’s bedroom.” He checked Maya for permission, and she nodded.

Seawitch sat on the couch under the window in what appeared to be the exact same position she’d been in before. Shadows hung beneath her prominent cheekbones, and her eyes still stared into a distance no one else could see. She didn’t register her visitors at all.

Fergal crouched down and examined her. Jewel couldn’t see any change in her, but when Fergal stood up he looked satisfied. “She saw me,” he said. “She couldn’t do anything about it, but she saw me.”

“Do you have any idea how to fix what’s wrong with her?” Rann asked. He had his arm draped over Jewel’s shoulders again. It was beginning to be a bit of a habit. She knew if she wasn’t careful she would forget why Rann was a bad idea for her.

Fergal shook his head. “The person who did this to her should be able to reverse it.”

“We don’t know who that was,” Jewel pointed out.

“Could it have been this dark master?” Rann asked. “Or Alberic? The same people who’ve been using her as a vessel.”

Fergal frowned again. “I can’t see why they’d do this to her. It makes her more difficult to look after. Can she even feed herself?”

Jewel shook her head. “We have to do it for her.”

“I don’t know then. We need to talk to this Alberic.” Something in his voice made the hair stand up on the back of Jewel’s arms. He must once have been a power to be reckoned with.

“Next on the list after Kara,” Maya said.

Jewel sighed. She wondered how they were going to contain Alberic while they dealt with Kara. It was yet another thing they would have to discuss once they’d gotten the circle assembled.

“So will you ask Maria and Charles about the circle?” Jewel asked Maya.

“You should give them a ring yourself,” Maya said. “You might have noticed they aren’t that keen on me.”

“But—”

“Phone them.” Maya poked her in the shoulder. “Do it tonight. They’ll appreciate it.”

“I suppose.” Jewel sighed heavily and turned to Fergal. “This Bill Maudley. Would you ask him?”

“We’ll go and see him tomorrow,” Fergal said. “I’ll introduce you. The whole circle can meet sometime tomorrow evening and plan the spellcasting.”

“Come for a walk with me?” Rann pulled Jewel to her feet. Annis and Connor had left, taking Liv with them, and soon after that, Fergal’s headache came back. Lila and Lykos persuaded him to let them take him back to the hotel. He looked better than he had yesterday, though, and in Rann’s view, the curse appeared to be wearing off quickly.

Jewel’s features were pinched with tension. “I don’t think—”

“The sun’s shining.” Rann waved at the window. “It only does that about twice a year here, so we need to make the most of it.”

“I need to think.” Jewel pursed her lips.

“No, you don’t.” Rann tugged on Jewel’s hand. “Tomorrow you need to think. You’ll have help then. Today you need to walk off some of that stress. And so do I.”

“You’re never stressed.” Jewel pulled her hand free.

“Go on.” Maya looked up from the papers she’d spread out on the sofa. “What are you going to do here? Worry, that’s what.”

Jewel heaved a longsuffering sigh but grabbed her jacket. “Okay. If everyone insists.” She sounded grumpy.

Rann took her hand as they walked to the heath.

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You don’t need to hold my hand. You keep doing it. I’m not two, you know?”

Rann swung her arm into the air. “It’s for my benefit. If I hold onto you, I know you’re not off getting into trouble.”

Jewel sniffed.

The grass squelched underfoot as they walked, but overhead, the sky was cloudless. The trees in leaf glowed with a palette of greens. Rann sighed.
If the weather would always be like this, then maybe London wouldn’t be such a miserable place.

“I miss the sea,” he said.

“Have you never been away from it before?” Jewel glanced up at his face.

“Oh yes.” He laughed. “Many times. I never like it, though.”

“I miss it, too.” Jewel’s attention concentrated on the blades of grass beneath her boots.

“After this is over, you’ll come back.” Rann wasn’t sure if he was telling her or asking her, and from the look she slanted at him, neither was she.

“I don’t—”

He didn’t want to hear the same thing again, so he pulled her round to face him. “You miss the sea.”

“I—”

“Do you want to join some coven just like this?”

“They’re not all—”

“In some city?” He slid his hands up to clasp her arms. She opened her mouth to argue with him, so he kissed her. Briefly.

He slowly moved forward, edging her backwards, until she leant against the trunk of a large tree. An ancient oak. Its branches blocked out the sun, and its leaves cast dancing shadows on Jewel’s face. He couldn’t read her thoughts at all. He raised one hand and cupped her cheek. She said nothing, so he kissed her again. Her lips softened under his, and he rubbed his mouth over hers. She made a small noise in the back of her throat and parted her lips. Her hands rose to fist in his hair. He pressed against her, tangling his tongue with hers, before withdrawing to kiss the corner of her mouth and the line of her jaw. She stared up at him then placed her hands on his chest and pushed him away.

“Well?” he asked.

“What?” Her tone mingled irritation with confusion, but he thought the flush on her cheeks had to be arousal.

“Do you want to be part of some game-playing coven, in some overpopulated city?” He repeated his earlier question. “Or do you want to come and live with me on the island?”

“Rann.” Jewel nibbled on her thumbnail. “Nothing’s changed. You haven’t changed. I haven’t changed. I need to—”

Rann rested his hands on her shoulders. “Jewel. You’ve confronted your mother. You’re going to deal with her. You know who you are. You always have.”

“But I—”

“Are you a coward?”

Her eyes sparked blue fire. “Of course I’m not, but—”

“Then fight for what you want.” He smoothed his hands over her shoulders.

“I don’t know what I want. That’s why—”

“You want me.” He watched her eyes flash with awareness and allowed his lips to curve into a smile. “Then take me. Maybe my desires have changed.”

Jewel made a noise that sounded almost like a growl.

“After you’ve done your duty to the coven, we’ll discuss this again.” He slid one arm round her shoulder and pulled her forward. “Come on, let’s walk.”