Chapter 14 Seraphine

Chapter 14 Seraphine

Seraphine had barely made it back to the Hollows when she heard screaming up ahead. People were pouring from the Cathouse bordello and scattering in a panic, shouting about a pair of monsters that had come up from the sewers like a black mist.

She pulled her cloak tighter, quickly folding herself into a doorway as a huge dark shape came stalking down the street. She blinked furiously, but it was no illusion. The towering creature loosely bore the shape of a man, only it was taller and bent out of all proportion, a beast draped in shadow. A nightmare brought to life.

It growled as it bore down on a bumbling drunkard, who had tripped in his haste to flee. His cries tore through the night, before abruptly cutting out. And then he was dead, crumpled among the leaves on the cracked cobbles.

The silence that followed was deafening. Sera didn't dare move in case the monster caught wind of her. But she could smell it as it lumbered past, that awful sulphuric stench sticking to her nostrils.

She had never seen anything like it.

But— no. That wasn't right. She had seen something like this before, in her own back garden. Not a monster, but a cat that had transformed before her eyes, into a vicious creature draped in shadow. Mama had been the one to feed it. Seraphine had watched it all from her bedroom, had even seen it attack Mama.

Hadn't she? The memory was so strange, sometimes she wondered if it was a dream. But now the world was tilting, and she didn't know what to think. Only that she had to get back to House Armand and warn the others.

She held her breath, waiting for the monster's plodding footsteps to fade. She clutched the bead around her neck, searching for the same bravery that had found her on the balcony of Villa Roman. The teardrop warmed in her grip, and she sought comfort in the thrum of its magic, even if it made no sense to her. She didn't fully trust it yet. She didn't know it yet.

The monster disappeared, taking its reign of terror west towards the Scholars' Quarter, where some other unlucky soul would likely fall into its jaws. Sera didn't wait around to find out.

She darted out from the doorway and went east, only to halt at the sight of another, larger creature halfway down the street. It snapped its head up, scenting her on the wind.

Shit.

Sera lunged for a nearby shadow but her necklace flared at the sudden rush of her panic. The beast stalked towards her. The bead had become a beacon at her throat, pulsing as though it was calling out to the creature.

She clamped her fist around the teardrop, smothering the light. Too late. The monster's eyes grew wider, its long black tongue snaking along the seam of its lips. A moth beholding a flame.

It pounced high, but she slid underneath it, coming quickly to her feet. She bolted into the night, her heart hammering at the sound of those loping footsteps behind her. They got louder, closer.

Her legs screamed, her lungs burning. She pushed on even as her body slowed, each laboured gasp searing her chest. Just when she thought the beast was going to lunge and catch her by the neck, a ragged howl rang out from the direction of the Scholars' Quarter. The monster skidded to a halt.

Sera didn't dare stop, even as she stole a glance over her shoulder. The creature was turning, starting to head towards that awful sound. Another monster, perhaps. Or another victim. Sera tried not to wince. Better them than her. She had fought too hard tonight to die.

She forged on, her head pounding as she raced through the midnight streets until at last, the lanterns winked out and the hedge that marked the boundary of House Armand feathered the darkness. She tugged her hood free as she rounded it, thundering down the garden path where she crashed straight into Theo, who was coming out of the front door.

‘Sera!' He caught her by the shoulders, sweeping his startled gaze over her. ‘You're here. I was just coming to—'

‘Retrieve my corpse?' she said, half-breathless, half-wired with adrenaline.

He frowned. ‘Well, the idea was to rescue you.'

‘Then you're a hell of a lot braver than I thought,' she said, pushing him inside, and going with him. She kicked the door closed, then pressed her back against it.

He blinked. ‘I don't know about bravery, but I've got a pocket full of chicken laced with valerian root. Every hound's weakness.'

Sera closed her eyes. So much had happened since the guard dogs at Villa Roman, she had almost forgotten about them entirely. Her fingers flew to her collar, where she grappled with the damn knot on her cloak. ‘Can you help me with this?' she heaved. ‘I feel like I'm choking.'

It was the panic, she knew. But Theo went to work anyway, deftly untying the cloak.

She closed her eyes and inhaled through her nose, smelling the sandalwood and vanilla that rolled off him, letting it anchor her. His hands brushed against her collarbone as he removed her cloak. It fell away, and whether it was the lightness it left behind or the warmth of the Shadowsmith standing with her in the safety of House Armand, she finally felt like she could breathe again.

‘That's better,' she said, on a long sigh. ‘Thank you.'

He flashed a grin. ‘I'm always happy to help you undress.'

‘And now you've ruined it.'

Bibi and Val were in the rec room on the third floor when Sera shuffled in. Bibi whimpered at the sight of her, then leaped from her chair and pulled her into a hug. Even Val, who was ordinarily averse to physical affection, hobbled over to join in.

‘We're so sorry, Sera,' said Bibi, between sniffs. ‘We thought you were right behind us, and then Val twisted her ankle and—and—'

‘We left you there as dog fodder,' said Val, her face tight with regret. ‘We should have stayed. We should have fought—'

‘I'm glad you ran,' said Sera, pulling back to look at both of them. ‘It was the smart decision.'

And more than that, she was relieved they hadn't witnessed the Dagger leaping from the roof of Villa Roman, or what she had done to him after. They might think her a monster after the way she gutted him.

‘All home in one piece,' said Theo, leaning against the doorframe. ‘Told you I'd rescue her.'

‘We watched you from the window, Branch,' said Val flatly. ‘You never even made it out of the house.'

‘That's how good I am at heroism.'

Sera rolled her eyes, but a watery smile tugged at her lips. Theo and Bibi helped Val back into the armchair, propping her swollen ankle on a pile of cushions.

Now that the adrenaline was finally leaving Sera's body, anxiety was taking root. She clutched her necklace, wondering what the hell was inside it as she paced by the fireplace. She turned her gaze to the flames, thinking of all the times she had watched her mother tinkering with metals and powders at her bench in the garden, long after the work day was done. If only she had bothered to take interest in them. Maybe then she would know about this magic in her necklace, and why it seemed to repel Daggers but attract monsters. Both beings of Shade.

‘Tell us how you got free of those hounds,' said Val. ‘You must have sold your soul to Saint Oriel.'

‘I jumped,' said Sera, offering the truth in its vaguest form for now. She wasn't ready to tell them everything, at least not until she made sense of it herself. ‘I threw a chair through the window and leaped onto the balcony.' Then I stabbed a Dagger to death. She shook off the vision of his face from her mind, silenced the memory of the terror in his voice.

You're not dead… How?

Sera wished she knew.

‘I climbed down the trellis and landed in a lilac bush.' She picked a twig from her hair and tossed it into the fire. ‘I ran into a monster on my way home.' A pause as the enormity of what had happened finally settled over her like a thundercloud. ‘Two, actually.'

Bibi and Val pitched forward in their seats. Theo stilled, his gaze falling to the teardrop at her throat. Sera hadn't realized she was still clutching it. She hastily tucked it under the collar of her sweater. There would be time for that later, but not now, not here. She went on, describing the monsters as best she could, confirming the rumours that had been swirling around Fantome for weeks. Her friends listened in horrified silence and when she finished, the room was so quiet she could hear Madame Fontaine's snores rattling from the floor above them.

‘Where on earth are the monsters coming from?' pondered Bibi.

‘I don't know,' said Sera, and that was the worst of it. She suddenly felt like she didn't know anything. About Fantome. About magic. About Mama.

Theo closed his eyes and scrubbed his hands through his hair, a skilled artificer trying to make sense of an abomination. But there was no sense to be found.

‘Are you going to tell Madame Mercure?' said Val.

‘No need,' came a voice from the doorway. Cordelia Mercure stepped into the room, wearing a black velvet robe and a thunderous expression. ‘I heard everything. Grave tidings indeed.'

‘Not all of it,' said Val, plucking the Rizzano tiara from a side table and waving it back and forth. ‘At least we nailed the Heist.'

Mercure's nostrils flared as she snatched it, but her interest in the tiara quickly faded. ‘We have far bigger matters to worry about now.' Her brows knitted, casting ripples along her forehead. ‘I'm afraid I can see no way around it. I must speak with Gaspard Dufort and arrange a meeting of the Orders.'

Sera's stomach twisted violently. And though her necklace was tucked safely under her sweater, she didn't miss the way it flared at that name, sharing in the silent spike of her fear.