Chapter 26

Chapter

Twenty-Six

I t took far longer than I liked to gather everyone up and leave because apparently babies came with a great deal of paraphernalia. I still wasn’t entirely sure how I felt about hanging around with this tiny version of myself, but at least Baby Daisy’s age meant I didn’t have to hold a conversation with myself. That would have been far too strange, even for me.

Although Rose was moving fast and collecting everything Baby Daisy needed, I was aware that the news about Athair had unsettled her deeply. I recognised the way she masked the tremors in her hands because I often tried to do the same. I understood why her face was so pale, but it was the occasional flashes of writhing red marks appearing and disappearing across her skin that caused me the most concern. She was trying to keep her blood magic at bay but her anxiety was making it difficult to force down. For the first time in a very long time, I wasn’t the person whose unruly powers were problematic, and it was unsettling to be on the other side for a change.

Several minutes after I’d burst back into the flat, we were on our way out. Thankfully, the stairwell was empty and silent. Hugo went ahead to check that nobody was lurking around any corners. Sir Nigel had vanished, no doubt into his own home. I silently – and fervently – urged both him and all the other residents nearby to stay inside. We had enough problems as it was.

We re-grouped at the main entrance. There were only a few pale glimmers of light left in the sky, which didn’t bode well. Hugo was peering out of the door, frowning at the gloomy side streets. ‘There’s no sign of activity out there,’ he said. ‘But that’s not necessarily good news.’

I nodded grimly. I’d have felt considerably less worried if it had just been him and me; the presence of his parents, Rose and Baby Daisy meant that our group was much more vulnerable. ‘Where’s the car parked?’ I asked.

Charles answered. ‘To the right, about twenty metres away.’ His voice was low and firm, and for the first time I spotted similarities with Hugo that went beyond the physical resemblance.

‘Okay. That’s not far. That’s good.’ I met Hugo’s eyes. ‘You should bring it here to the door.’

He was already ahead of me and taking the keys from his father. ‘Athair has met everyone else, but he’s only seen me from a distance so he might not recognise me. If he’s out there watching this building, there’s a good chance that me on my own won’t raise his suspicions.’

I crossed my fingers tightly. ‘If you do see him, don’t do anything stupid.’

‘Please.’ He rolled his eyes. ‘This is me we’re talking about. I never do anything stupid.’ He paused and something deeper flared in his blue eyes. ‘Apart from falling for you.’

Tash gasped, and my mouth dropped at his sudden open display of emotion. There was no time to say anything, however; he was already out of the door, his hands in his pockets as he turned right to retrieve the vehicle and tried to look casual.

I checked on Rose; there were beads of sweat on her forehead, but the signs of impending blood magic across her skin had gone. She was concentrating hard, as if it were taking all her energy not to give in to her darker impulses. ‘Have you got this?’ I asked quietly. ‘Are you alright?’

‘Yes,’ she whispered.

I tried to smile at her. ‘There won’t be time to clip Daisy into a car seat. We’ll have to jump in as soon as Hugo brings the car and get her sorted out once we’re on the move.’

Rose looked at Charles and Tash, then all three of them blinked at me. ‘We don’t have a baby seat in the car.’

‘There’s not a larger version for Hugo?’

Tash’s cheeks coloured. ‘Uh, no.’

‘We are planning to get one,’ Charles said quickly. ‘We just haven’t got around to it yet.’

Welcome to 1994. Hester popped her head up from her spot on my shoulder. ‘What’s wrong with you? Get a proper seat for your kid!’

Otis nodded solemnly. ‘Safety first. Always.’

‘Tell that to that damned fiend and those vampires,’ Charles said. Fair point.

There was a flash of headlights and the sound of an engine as Hugo arrived outside the door. I handed the bag stuffed full of nappies and sweet-smelling baby equipment to Tash. ‘Wait here,’ I said. ‘Don’t come out until I say.’

I opened the door, sucked in a deep breath of chilly evening air and stepped out. The street was quiet and I paused for a moment, swinging my head first to the left and then to the right. Everything was clear: there was no sign of the vamps that Nigel had described.

I glanced through the car window at Hugo. His hands were gripping the steering wheel and he was ready to make a quick getaway. Our eyes met, then I reached for both front and back passenger doors and opened them. We had to make this quick .

I spun on my heels and beckoned to Rose, Charles and Tash. They immediately followed me onto the pavement. As we’d already decided, Tash slid into the rear seat first, then Rose handed Baby Daisy – who was thankfully fast asleep – to me before following Tash.

I glanced down at the baby’s face. Although her weight in my arms was unfamiliar, I didn’t feel as nervous holding her as I’d thought I would. I leaned down and prepared to pass her to Rose now she was inside the car. Charles climbed into the front passenger seat and clipped in his seatbelt.

Rose took Baby Daisy so I could get in, but before I could manoeuvre myself onto the seat a hard voice rang out. ‘Give me my daughter.’

‘Athair!’ Hester squeaked shrilly in my ear.

I raised my head in time to see him stride from the shadows on the other side of the street flanked by two gaunt vampires. Athair wasn’t wearing another body this time because he no longer needed to hide his true self. His golden skin glittered in the light from the street lamps, and his red eyes were shining with purpose and intent. But the road was clear: if Hugo reversed quickly we could still get away.

I briefly regretted not taking more spider’s silk when I’d had the chance; alas, there was nothing I could do about it right now.

Suddenly a hand slammed into my chest: Rose had shoved me – hard. I staggered as she threw herself out of the car. Tash was staring wide-eyed from her seat as she held Baby Daisy in her arms.

I choked out a cry as Rose stormed past the vehicle towards Athair. Her back was ramrod straight and her head was high. Oh no. ‘She’s not yours!’ she screamed. ‘She’ll never be yours!’

There was no mistaking the delight on Athair’s face. The two vamps started forward, hunger throbbing in their undead eyes, but when Athair lifted his right hand they stopped immediately. He might not command the same numbers of vampires as Vargas, but his mastery over the undead creatures was clearly just as strong.

‘Rosie, darling,’ he purred. ‘I’m so glad we can finally talk face to face again.’

I didn’t know what to do. My immediate instinct was to rush forward and either join Rose to face Athair or drag her to the car, whether she liked it or not. In fact, I’d already taken several steps forward to do just that when I faltered. My presence by Rose’s side would probably only panic her further. I couldn’t rush into this without thinking, I had to come up with a plan first.

Unfortunately, while my mind was racing, it appeared that Rose had come up with a plan all of her own. And it wasn’t a good one.

The blood magic she’d been trying so hard to keep at bay flared up, and the now familiar – and horrifying – red shapes danced across her skin once more. She threw her head back and a strange keening sound unlike anything I’d ever heard before escaped her lips. Then she thrust her hands out in front of her and spewed black flame in Athair’s direction.

Athair reacted quickly, stepping back and directing the two vampires to form a barrier in front of him. They did as they were commanded, but as soon as Rose’s black fire smashed into their bodies they started to writhe and scream, their agony plain to see.

‘Daisy!’ Hester hissed. ‘Get into the car! She’s giving us the chance we need to make our escape! This is how it’s supposed to be! This is how we save the baby.’

But I was the baby . I would not allow Rose to die for my sake. I looked at Hugo. His jaw was tight, but he nodded at me; he understood .

He opened his door and stepped out to join me, ignoring his parents’ cries. Charles fiddled with his seatbelt, clearly prepared to attach himself to our small group of terrified fighters.

I spun around and snarled at him with such ferocity that he blanched. ‘No! Slide into the driver’s seat and be ready to leave when it’s time. You will know when that time is!’ I pushed Hester and Otis off my shoulder. ‘You two need to get inside that car.’

They hovered in the air then looked at each other. ‘Nah,’ Hester said. ‘The vamps are already goners. There’s only Athair left. This time we’re with you.’

‘Till the bitter end,’ Otis agreed.

There wasn’t any time to get into an argument; the vampires were already ash and Rose was getting ready to throw more blood magic at Athair. His attention was wholly on her.

‘I knew the moment I saw you that you were the right person to be the mother of my child,’ he breathed. ‘Look at you. You’re magnificent.’ He spread his arms wide. ‘Come on, Rosie. Attack me again. Hit me with everything you’ve got.’

I gazed at his face. He genuinely wanted her to attack him and the thought was chilling. Athair wanted Rose to give herself up to blood magic entirely. The more of those foul powers that she called upon, the closer she would be to becoming a fiend herself. Perhaps he had visions of creating a happy fiend family – himself, Rose and me. Three fiends together.

A growl rumbled deep in my chest. That wasn’t going to happen. I wouldn’t let it.

Rose didn’t have the same qualms that I did. As Hugo and I ran towards her with both brownies keeping pace in the air, she released another blast of power, conjuring up clouds of pitch-black smoke that billowed in Athair’s direction and obscured him from view. I could still hear his laughter as it enveloped him.

I grabbed Rose’s right arm while Hugo took her left. ‘Enough!’ I snarled at her. ‘We are leaving!’

‘No,’ she muttered, resisting. ‘I will kill him. I have to kill him. It’s the only way to keep you safe.’

‘You can’t kill him, Rose. The only way you can achieve that is if you become a fiend yourself.’

She turned her wild eyes to me. ‘So be it.’

I hissed. Hugo looked over her head towards me. ‘Do it,’ he told me. He was right.

I inhaled deeply. ‘Sorry, Mum,’ I said. Then I curled my hand into a fist and hit her in the head. She crumpled immediately.

Hugo caught her before she fell to the ground and scooped her up. She moaned briefly. She’d be pissed off when she came round, but she’d recover.

Unfortunately, that was when the smoke started to clear and Athair’s figure reappeared. ‘Go,’ I urged Hugo. ‘Get her to the car!’

‘Daisy—’

‘Please, Hugo!’

His expression twisted but he did as I asked. I turned and faced my father. Any doubt I’d had about our shared identity had long since faded away.

Athair’s maniacal grin had been wiped from his face. ‘You again.’ He stared at me. ‘You shouldn’t have involved yourself in this. Your death will not be pretty – but it will be well-deserved.’

Otis zipped towards him. ‘If you didn’t want her involved, you shouldn’t have left that letter for her in Rose’s bedroom!’

Genuine confusion crossed Athair’s face.

Before I could stop her, Hester joined her brother. ‘Yeah!’ she yelled. ‘And you shouldn’t appear at Gordon Mackenzie’s house in thirty years’ time and force her to release her magic and set off the stupid magic skull that sent us here! This is all your fault!’

‘What?’ Athair asked. ‘What the fuck are you on about?’ His eyes flicked to mine. ‘Why am I being harangued by two brownies with a death wish? What are they talking about?’

My voice was soft. ‘You haven’t worked it out yet? I thought you were smart.’

Athair’s head tilted – and that was when I sent out two blasts of air magic that snagged the cars parked on either side of the road and flung them forward. The hunks of metal crashed down on top of him, squashing him flat beneath their heavy weight.

I knew they wouldn’t keep him down for long and I only had seconds to escape. I reached out, snatched a brownie in each hand and ran for all I was worth.