Hidden Spark (Dark Magic Enforcer Book 6) (22 page)

But it didn't slow and it didn't turn away.

This was gonna hurt.

Now I Remember

"Ah, that's who it was," I mumbled to myself as I lay on the cold lino, flat on my back, staring at the freshly painted lilac walls, Kate and Mithnite sort of half lying on me, half on the floor.

Mithnite groaned and jabbed an elbow into my eye as he scrambled off me and I groaned right back at him. Kate was next, managing to dig a knee where no knee should ever be dug, and much as I would have preferred to lie there for eternity, I figured if they were showing willing then I should, too.

"Did you see him down there?" asked Delilah.

"Who?" I asked, finally recalling the name now she was there in front of us, naked, just like the rest of us. I was so damn stressed I didn't even have the energy to admire her pale, freckled and slender body. Mithnite was willing to give it a go, though, and he ogled her like he was trying to remember every detail just in case he never got a look at another naked woman.

"Who do you think?" Delilah replied, frowning at me, hands on hips, accusing.

"If you mean the man we call Dragon, then no, should we have? And what the hell is going on? Did you do this, put us in that place? We nearly died."

"Oh, you humans, so dramatic. Do you know how hard it's been trying to act human while I sit in this damn empty cafe waiting for you to get your act together?"

"Me!? What are you blaming me for?"

"Because you were supposed to have got him years ago. You and your damn self-pity, swearing off magic. Whoever heard of such a thing?"

I was being lectured, no, scalded, by a dragon who had decided to sell paninis. This was way too much for one day.

"Wonder if Madge's is open, we could get a very late breakfast," I suggested, hopeful and absolutely ravenous. "Damn, no money."

"No, I'm not bloody open," shouted Madge. I turned, only then realizing that Delilah's rather dramatic return to the surface had entailed blasting a hole right under her own new cafe, but also carving a rather big chunk out of Madge's floor, not to mention the wall that divided the two enterprising ladies' businesses.

"Oh, hi, Madge. Any chance of a fry-up? We've had a busy afternoon. Um, or is it evening now?"

"Spark, if I hear one more word out of you I'll shove you right back down that bloody big hole." I made a zipper action across my lips—it's never a good idea to cross Madge. We all took a step back, ready for the onslaught. Boy was Delilah gonna get an earful. "And speaking of bloody big holes, what's the meaning of this, Delilah? Did you do this? Faz, was it her?"

"Um, yeah, but she saved us from, er, stuff. Lava, falling ancient buildings, crumbly pillars, all the underground shenanigans usually reserved for er, dwarves, or hobbits or something." Look, I was feeling out-of-sorts, okay?

"Why haven't you got any clothes on?" shrieked Madge, the abundance of skin only just registering.

"Ours got burned off by the lava. It was very hot," I said, thinking that was a good enough reason.

"And what about you, Delilah? Have you all been up to hanky-panky? You better not have done it near my cafe, I'll never hear the end of it. There could be stains!"

"Stains! Like that would show in your..." I changed tack after a terrifying look. "Um, Madge, we just exploded up through a hole from the underworld, we haven't had time for any romping, or any frolicking, or anything else that involves one of us sticking our w—"

"Good," said Madge hurriedly, looking relieved and actually calming down a little.

I peered into the hole, curious despite my utter confusion. The others joined me and even as we looked down into the dark depths the rock shifted as if sentient and closed itself up. The only sign of anything untoward having happened was bare concrete and a large area of missing lino.

"It usually isn't as big as that," said Delilah, as if it explained everything. "Normally, I'm just a human when I go in and out, and then I simply replace the lino. I've got spare," she added, as if anyone cared.

"Everyone put some damn clothes on," screamed Madge. "I can't be talking to you when you're all dangly bits and wobbly tits, it's giving me a complex."

She was taking it rather well, I thought, and I still wanted a fry-up.

"I don't feel so good," whispered Kate before she collapsed.

Getting up to Speed

I rushed over to Kate, but Madge tutted and gave me a hard stare so I backed off, lowering my gaze—she is more intense than Grandma at times. She sat Kate down at one of the swanky new chairs, scowling at first the chair, then Delilah, then the world in general, but mainly at the chair—way too shiny for Madge's liking.

We could do nothing but watch as Madge, a witch I'd never seen use magic for anything more than the odd zap if anyone said something cheeky to her, knelt in front of Kate, conscious now but looking like she was gonna bite anything with a pulse, and things got rather strange. Yes, stranger than the underground goings-on.

Madge kind of wobbled, if that's the right word for it, morphing back and forth from her usual appearance to something... er, different. Let's leave it at that. I don't want to get into trouble with the only woman in the country that can make a proper breakfast. She took Kate in her arms and I swear she fed her on something entirely beyond my reach, beyond my understanding.

They were swathed in a red mist of blood magic, and Kate drank greedily of the strange forces. In no time it was over, Madge back being Madge, Kate looking as hot as if she'd fed for real—and I guess she had—body vibrant, naked flesh glowing like an invitation to come lick it. Things got so intense both Mithnite and I had to go stand in a corner and stare at the wall for a while before it all got rather embarrassing.

When we'd calmed down, we turned to find Delilah reaching out for Kate, clearly just as taken by the erotic emanations, but Madge slapped her away and then said, "You better get this repaired, and quick smart. I open early and I don't wanna lose any customers."

"I'll get it fixed, don't worry," said Delilah, chastised by Madge even though she could probably eat her in a mouthful and not even have a problem with the old lady gristle. Maybe, or maybe what Madge had given us a glimpse of could have put up a good fight. Okay, enough of that, I'm treading on dangerous ground here.

With that, Madge was gone, ducking under the broken wall, stepping gingerly on the bare concrete where there'd been a hole to a secret world moments before.

"I think you've got some explaining to do," I said to Delilah, slumping into a chair, the metal cold on my bare bum.

"Let me get us some clothes, then we can talk." She disappeared behind the counter and out through a door.

"You guys really have an interesting life," said Mithnite, squealing as he sat down and got the cold arse treatment too.

"Yeah, but for the last five years the most that's happened was when one of the chickens went missing. I miss those days," I said wistfully.

"Liar," said Kate, smiling.

"Hmm, maybe."

"So, is that it?" asked Mithnite, looking so battered and bruised it was hard to find a scrap of flesh that hadn't taken punishment.

"Oh boy, you really do have a lot to learn," I said with what may have been a laugh, may have been a cry. "Mithnite, this is just the beginning. There's still a crazed megalomaniacal magician out there intent on destroying the world. It's far from over."

"Yeah, forgot." Poor kid was on his last legs. Time for him to get some rest. He'd probably sleep for a week, maybe longer. At his age the effects of using magic like we had would be compounded, and I knew the old me would have been out of action for a long time.

But not now. Now I felt pretty damn good. With some food and a few cups of coffee I'd be good to go.

"Here we are. Kate, I found you something nice, but you two will have to make do with my gym stuff."

I was about to crack a joke about dragons not really needing rowing machines but then thought better of it. We said our thanks and then, ridiculous as it may sound, modesty took over. Each of us turned our back on the other and dressed as if we'd not just been running around naked for hours, hanging off each other and generally sharing sweat and fear in the most intimate of ways.

Dressed, we faced the room. Kate looked nice in tight gray jeans and a simple green vest. Mithnite looked like a reject from an eighties exercise video, pink shorts, cutoff orange t-shirt that was way too tight, and I guess I didn't look much better in my white Puma shorts and a green Adidas vest I secretly liked.

We all burst out laughing, the situation so ridiculous there was nothing else to do, unless we cried.

"Right," I said, getting serious. "Let's talk."

"Dragon said he created shifters, is that true?"

"Haha, he's so full of himself. No, he didn't. They're a natural occurrence, unlike vampires and zombies, which he is responsible for. Ah, such an endless game of cat and mouse, it's been going on for so long I can't even remember the last time I saw him."

"But he keeps evading you? Why don't you just, you know, frazzle him?" asked Mithnite.

"It's complicated, but that's relationships for you. Truth is he's not easy to kill, and I have tried. I had him to myself for millennia and things were good, down in my lair, coming to the surface as we pleased. But he turned bad, and I locked him away, sealed him in. But he's sly, he got out. Oh, I've had countless years of peace from that horrid man over the millennia, and these last few hundred years have been a delight."

"You imprisoned him with the dwarves?"

"No, I found him and almost had him and then he managed to worm his way into their world, and the idiot got stuck. He hoarded their gold to try to get strong enough to defeat me, but couldn't get out until you helped him. I knew it would be you, hence all this. I wanted to be here when he arrived, and, er, well, I fancied opening a nice cafe, too. Is that silly?" Delilah seemed genuinely abashed that she wanted to do something so mundane as start a small business. I guess being what she was gives you a different perspective on things.

"I think it's wonderful," said Kate. "It's nice to be your own boss, but setting up next to Madge's wasn't a very good idea. No-one around here will eat a thing unless it's more butter than bread."

"So I'm discovering. But I had to be close to Spark, so I could be ready for when he got Dragon out. I heard all about your encounter with the giant, Spark, so knew you'd be the one he used. I know how that fool's mind works. Ugh, horrid man."

"Okay, I understand all that, I think, but it doesn't explain the fact you opened a damn great hole in our kitchen. We nearly died!" What a world, eh? Where ancient dragon shifters open up cafes to sell posh sandwiches and unpronounceable coffees with bits in.

"Sorry about that. I, er, I thought it was him, that he was there. I reached out and have been doing so daily, trying to get a link to Dragon, and I felt it, so went down into my old home and forced open a tunnel. I truly thought I had him for good, or at least for a good few thousand years."

"But he wasn't there." I thought for a moment. "Ah, I got it, because of the possession. He took me over, to get out, and I guess you felt a whisper of him, and I was the last one to be in contact with him before he disappeared again early this morning. Damn, this has been one hell of a day."

"He did the unspeakable, the taboo? That'll be the reason I sensed him, but I am sorry."

Delilah did appear to be genuinely sorry and a genuinely nice person. And a dragon. How cool is that?

Babies

I called Dancer, who went apoplectic, shouting and ranting, demanding to know where I'd been and why I wasn't answering my phone. I told him that a giant hole opened up in my kitchen and dropped me and my family into a pool of lava and then we ran around like ill-prepared misfits cast as extras in a new Hobbit movie before getting saved by a dragon, all whilst naked, and he shut up.

He's so obvious at times. I knew he wasn't thinking about the dragon or the lava, but about Kate running around all sweaty and bouncy, dirty old man that he is. Yes, I was doing the same, but that's my prerogative!

"Ah, well, okay, that's a pretty good excuse."

"Look, I'll be over to tell you everything, and we have a serious issue, more than I thought. Have you found Dragon?"

"No, that's why I'm tense. It's quiet. Too quiet."

"Can you send a car? Get a goon to drop it outside Madge's, no coming in. Just get him to beep the horn and leave the keys. I'll take Kate and Mithnite home then I'll report in. Okay?"

"Sure. You okay? Up to it? This is a big job for your first one back."

"I'm fine, all good my end."

"Ah, right." He hung up.

Ten minutes later, a horn beeped and I looked out the window to see a goon close the door to the car, get into another one, and drive off with his buddy.

"Okay, time to go home," I said. Kate and Mithnite both looked utterly relieved. I just had to pray nobody saw us as we left. I've got a reputation to uphold and unfashionable sports gear is not how I like to present myself.

We said our goodbyes to Delilah, promised to return her clothes—washed, of course—and I drove us home.

The city felt alien after being underground and running around in what now felt like an utter dream. How drab it felt without the lava or the fear of death—in other words, I loved it. It was early evening now and the sun had gone, replaced by heavy clouds closing in on us and threatening to soak those still wearing shorts and t-shirts, or summer dresses. That's the Welsh for you, it could be freezing cold and snowing but if it was supposed to be the summer then they would damn well wear something skimpy. You can't get a sunburn if you cover up.

Mithnite snored away in the back of the car, I mostly inhaled new car smell. Dancer had kept the tradition of upgrading the fleet yearly and boy had I missed it.