Hidden Spark (Dark Magic Enforcer Book 6) (12 page)

Mithnite nodded, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

"But we trusted him."

"And he's gone a little loopy, that's not his fault. That's life's fault, and bad stuff happens to us all. It won't bring back your friends, but at least you have a second chance."

"I suppose."

I said something then that I knew I would regret, but I saw too much of myself in him, knew how much he wanted this, to be part of the Hidden world. Maybe I was trying to right the wrongs done to me, to steer him along the right path, or just give the kid a chance without anyone trying to screw with his life and turn him into something other than what he would discover he wanted to be in time. To let him have the choice, to follow his own path without any damn Hidden using and abusing him for their own nefarious means.

"You can stay with us, just for a while," I said, wondering how Kate would take to our new house guest.

"Really? Awesome. Thanks, Spark, this will be so great. You can teach me all about—"

"Whoa! Hold on. I'm offering a roof, some respect, and a safe place to live, not that I'm going to be your teacher."

"Oh, okay."

I studied my new lodger, who looked as smug as a vampire in a room full of Twilight fans, and could tell exactly what he was thinking. He was thinking that he'd get me to teach him, that I was now his new instructor, and that he was going to be safe and protected. That he would soon be calling me Master.

I wished I could offer him at least the safety part, but our world doesn't work like that, never has.

Nobody is ever safe. Certainly not now, probably not ever.

"Come on, time to go see Dancer. And then you need to go be very, and I mean very, nice to Kate and hope she says yes."

I guess I had to do the same thing.

Surprise Attack

I skidded to a halt, the two Bentleys blocking the way.

Five large, and less than friendly vampires stood in front of the vehicles, smartly dressed in black suits, black shirts, black ties, each with wraparound black shades. Guess they liked black. That, or everything else was in the wash.

I knew who they were immediately. This was the new face of the goons charged with doing Oskari Thorstad's bidding. He'd smartened up the whole vampire organization once he became Head five years ago. All his people dressed the same, and he'd culled any that refused to do exactly as they were told.

Inheriting the mess that was the vampire community when I'd killed the old Head meant he had his work cut out for him, but he was no fool. He was old, cold, even for a vampire, yet one of the fairest I'd ever had the misfortune to meet. He had his House in order.

Kate had told me tales over the years of how he handled things, and there was no doubt he kept a tight leash on his people, ensuring they kept their activities hidden, always in the shadows, and for five years now there had been a peace of sorts between the vampires and the rest of the myriad Hidden communities.

I hadn't seen him since I returned from Japan, had no wish to, but as the door to a Bentley opened and the unmistakable Oskari stepped out into the half darkness, that was about to change.

"Just be cool. Be polite, very polite, and don't speak unless he asks you a question. And for your safety, and mine, don't mention the damn gold. They'll rip you to bits if they get wind of it, okay?" I glanced at Mithnite quickly before turning my attention back to Oskari, who was now standing facing us, clearly in no mood to be kept waiting.

"Okay. Keep quiet, be good. Got it."

"I'm serious. He's more powerful than you can imagine, and just because I've dealt with vampires in the past doesn't mean my luck won't run out. Be nice."

We opened the car doors and stepped out into the frigid air of the Welsh countryside.

"Howdy fellas," I said to the two goons that stepped toward Mithnite and I. They remained mute, but one reached out a hand to my shoulder. "You try to touch me and I'll kill you right now. Don't think I won't, or can't."

The goon must have spent so much time working out his muscles that he'd neglected to improve his mental abilities, as with a sneer, and a snap of fangs already dripping milky venom, he did the shimmer vampire thing, moving forward impossibly fast so he was right up in my face. He tried to put his arm to me again, acting like a child, and my eyes snapped to black faster than they ever had before.

Without even calling consciously to the Empty, I felt its magic enter me. Mingling with my own, it surged through my ink, swelled up my hand, imbibing it with incredible strength now a part of my nature, and before he could even scream I'd clamped my hand over the top of his head, squeezed tight, and slammed his body down onto the pot-holed road so hard that his bones broke and his head split open. The force such that his skull cleaved right in two, cracking open like an easter egg, brains spilling all over the road. There was no hope for him, no chance to use the vampire blood magic to make a quick recovery. He was dead, food for the creatures of the night.

"I warned him," I said, staring right at Oskari as the other goon took a step backward and looked to his boss for orders.

"So you did. He was new, and he had not passed his trial period," Oskari replied, unruffled by the action. He indicated with his head for the other goon to step back into line behind him with the others. Oskari stepped forward.

I let the magic recede a little, but kept my Hidden sight, kept the thrum of magic coursing through my ink under control, even though I wanted to just go wild with the power I had now, the day seemingly never ending when it came to the surprises my newly resurrected, much improved magic abilities had in store for me.

Mithnite, doing pretty well, crossed his arms, let the vampires see that he too was taken by magic, eyes dark, ink on his exposed forearms raised and burning red, rather than my black, and I have to admit he did look pretty intimidating with his much denser frame now he'd grown into his body and had been working out at the gym. I'd have to ask him what his routine was, he looked buff.

"What's this about, Oskari?" Although I'd just killed his goon I tried to stay polite—no good can come of insulting the Head vampire, especially not Oskari.

He moved closer, showing he had no fear of me, certainly none of Mithnite however hard he was trying to act, and said, "I hear you've been playing with the dwarves." He studied me from behind his impenetrable sunglasses, rimmed in gold like the last time I'd seen him. His pale, almost white hair blew gently in the breeze coming down from the hills, but the ancient man, with his flawless complexion, oozed confidence and utter disdain for us lowly humans. This enforcer in particular. It could give a guy a complex if he let it.

"What if we have? That's Council business. If you want to know anything, ask Dancer. He is your boss now." I knew I was pushing it, verging on being disrespectful, but these damn old ones, they give me the creeps.

"I also hear you met a dragon, got the dwarves their gold back."

He was fishing, that much was clear. Maybe more than fishing. He knew. But how? I wasn't about to tell him anything, though. If he wanted to ask, he could, but it didn't mean I would answer.

"I can neither confirm nor deny anything. My boss, the UK Head of the Hidden Council," I emphasized, "is who I answer to."

"Do not insult me, Spark. You know that's a very bad idea."

"I apologize. I meant no disrespect," I did, "but you know how this works, Oskari. I can't talk to you about anything, you know that."

"Hmm. Guess we'll go have a little look-see of our own, then. Not left anything behind, have you? Anything you want to tell me, before it's too late?"

"No, nothing. Well, nice seeing you again, hope you've settled into the new job." It was different with Oskari to how it had been with Taavi. With Taavi there was much more of a creepiness, an otherworldliness. With Oskari you could almost believe you were talking to a human being. Although he oozed vampire, he didn't ooze the outright malevolence and cruelty that Taavi had.

For Oskari it was all business. He genuinely wanted to see his kind thrive, but also wanted order and control. He knew it was best for all of us that way. I still utterly loathed the man, mainly for what had happened during an incident with Kate, one I wished I could forget but never would.

"Okay, as you wish. Oh, congratulations on dealing with that little problem in Japan. I hope you feel some satisfaction now it's finished?" He cocked his head to the side, seemingly genuinely interested in my answer.

"You know what, Oskari? I don't. I'm glad she's dead, and thank you for giving me the name, but I feel no sense of satisfaction. I simply hope she burns in hell for an eternity."

"Oh, haha, you can be sure of that, Spark. You can be sure that we all will, when it's our time. None of us are pure of heart. None of us." I could feel his pale blue eyes piercing my skull, even though I was just staring at a dark reflection of myself in his polished sunglasses.

"You may be right. Well, things to do, bosses to report to. Bye."

"Goodbye, be seeing you."

He turned and got back into his car, goons trying to give me a gangsta stare that just made them look like extras from a bad movie.

"Come on, get in," I said to Mithnite. "And you can uncross your arms now. Let me give you a lesson in looking tough."

"Okay, but I did good, right?"

"Yeah, you did good. But a true tough guy, a man who isn't scared, and trust me, often it's best to be very scared, doesn't try to act like he isn't afraid. You have to appear neutral. Unflappable, utterly at ease."

"Huh? But that's acting cool and calm, same as acting tough is, isn't it?"

"Ugh, no, it's different." We carried on talking as we got in and buckled up. "Look, you're acting, but you aren't. The secret is to be yourself, act how you would normally, but with an edge. Just like the vampires, you have to act like you don't care, like the situation is one of your making, as if you're in control whether you are or not. You gotta be Mr. Frosty."

"So that was an act, the way you dealt with Oskari?" he asked, looking surprised.

"No, I really am one cold, confident, vampire killing badass."

"Oh, right." Mithnite sat back and I swear he practiced looking like a gangster the rest of the way back to the city.

Poor kid, he just looked like he had something in his eye, the way he kept squinting and giving a slight sneer that looked more like a nervous tic. But, to be fair, he had handled himself exceptionally well, certainly better than I had at his age.

I wondered when it was that I changed from acting tough to feeling it deep in my bones. Guess it was today, when, for the first time, I genuinely did feel seriously hardcore, immune to fear or intimidation.

It had been a hell of a long time coming.

A Dressing Down

"Hey, Spark, who's your buddy?" asked Persimmon, heading for the exit to Hidden HQ just as we came through the portal.

"Hey, long time no see," I replied, recalling the fight we'd had the last time we met. I didn't hold it against her, not much, anyway. "This is Mithnite Soos. Mithnite, this is Persimmon, one ferocious lady. She saved my life once, after almost beating the crap out of me."

"Haha, almost? I could have taken you." Persimmon, face as beautiful as a faery's earlobe, features strong and proud, lips highlighted with a touch of shocking red that made you want to pucker up and kiss them, gave Mithnite the faintest of smiles and the poor lad nearly fainted.

She is stunningly beautiful, but it's hard for me, as looking at her brings back memories of her cousin, a woman that was my friend, just as gorgeous, but a lot more dead. I did my best to keep my eyes raised to her face, not lowering to her ample bosom that sat proud beneath a tight black vest, the rest of her wrapped up just as invitingly.

"He... Hello. Nice to meet you," Mithnite managed, but did a much worse job of keeping his eyes where they should be.

Persimmon tutted and said, "Damn, you guys are all the same," and with a casual wave over her shoulder she headed toward the door.

We watched in silence and admiration as her perfect bottom wiggled like a promise of earthly delights, struggling to escape their tight prison of denim, filling our minds with dreams of biting and licking her dark, flawless skin. Then she was gone, and it was just two sad fools with their mouths open. Mithnite had an excuse, he was a youngster. I was just a pathetic old man that should know better, and also had a vampire girlfriend who probably wouldn't take too kindly to my ogling.

"Come on, let's go see Dancer. Just don't wind him up, he gets jittery about things if they don't go as planned. And my guess is he won't be in the best of moods."

"Okay," said Mithnite, not really listening, probably dreaming of the joys of the flesh. I wondered if he'd had any girlfriends yet. The life of an apprentice wizard means you aren't exactly able to mix with Regulars and meet girls and go to parties. You're more likely to meet a demon and get dragged down into hell than to get lucky and go out on a date. Oh, the sacrifices we make!

"Come on, best not to keep the boss waiting."

I knocked on Dancer's open door even though I could see him pacing the room. It seemed polite given that he was so stressed, I just didn't know exactly why.

He turned at the sound and said with a sigh, "Come in, and close the door behind you. What's he doing here again?" He pointed at Mithnite as if I didn't know who he was talking about.

"He came with me, obviously. I'm being a good Samaritan. He helped us out today, you should be thanking him," I said, slumping into a chair and wondering if Dancer would mind if I took my winklepickers off. Come to that, I could do with taking everything off. I was dirty, needed a shower, and certainly needed sleep and a decent meal. Thoughts of home clamored for attention but they would have to wait.

"Spark, this is Council business. You can't go taking outsiders with you on jobs," lectured Dancer.