Nemesis (28 page)

It took a second for it to click that he meant Ms Weston. Who, I was starting to think, was playing some serious mind-games with Ada. I never should have hung up on her yesterday, but I’d been at Valeria’s police office at the time. All I’d managed to do was act like a complete dick, again. For all I knew, trying to snap her out of the guilt would only make things worse. But Ada didn’t deserve to suffer for what someone else had forced her to do. Even if it made me a monster in her eyes.

***

Aglaia’s council meeting room was wrapped in tension so thick, even magic felt more potent. Perhaps it had to do with the heap of glittering black rock on the table. The obsidiate the council had confiscated from the centaurs. It didn’t escape my attention that the mage kept glancing at it. And we were unarmed, too. Ms Weston had given me the magic-tracker again, and a stunner with one shot, just in case. But that wouldn’t stand up to an army of mages
or
centaurs.

I got the vibe that no one thought the centaurs would give in so easily. But the terms of the treaty were laid out, and both humans and centaurs signed in triplicate, one for mages, one for centaurs, and another copy for the Alliance, communicator-scanned for permanent records. Markos wore an expression of absolute relief when Eidora signed her side of the agreement, and some of the tension in the room eased.

Except there was still the obsidiate. Only one world openly traded in the volatile substance used in the Alliance’s weaponry, like the stunners: Valeria.

“If I may interrupt,” said Ikor the mage, “it seems a tad unbalanced to only permit the use of such a substance on certain worlds. Aglaia has no such method of defence.”

“Nor does it need one,” said one of Valeria’s council members, a sour-faced man with a metal replacement for one hand. “The peace on Aglaia is due in no small part to the absence of such substances as this.” He indicated the obsidiate. “In any case, this is the property of Valeria’s Alliance now. I trust that the queen would never permit the use of this by her people?”

“Certainly not,” said Eidoria, looking affronted. “Tryfon and the Anthos tribe were unnaturals.” She glared at her brother, which broadcasted her opinion on any links with offworld. But with her as queen, at least there was no danger that the centaurs would take advantage of a volatile magic-based substance.

Pity I couldn’t say the same for the humans. Valeria’s head didn’t appear to be acting suspiciously, but after what had happened yesterday, I wasn’t about to let him out of my sight. I kept one eye on the mage throughout the rest of the meeting, too. He might have had a point that not having access to magic-based sources put Aglaia at a disadvantage, but it wasn’t as though they were defenceless. No, everyone put their own world first, and it was a bloody miracle we’d found any solution at all.

But for now, Aglaia was united alongside the Alliance, and the obsidiate now in the hands of Valeria’s council. Whoever had wanted to cause a war had failed. I scanned the room as the meeting broke up, and the mage caught my eye, and beckoned me to follow.

“Yes?” I said once I was sure no one was listening in.

“I merely wanted to ask after your success with the advice on magic I gave you.”

Like hell was I telling him a thing. “I fail to see how that’s relevant here.”

“I was simply curious. Is that so hard to believe?”

“As it happens, yes. There are an awful lot of untrustworthy people around.”

“And you don’t trust me.”

Sure. As much as I’d trust a rabid chalder vox.

“Well,” said the mage, my silence having spoken for itself, “it is a relief that this business is dealt with, at least. It seems the centaurs had a traitor in their midst.”

Yeah. I needed to speak to Markos. The horse-men had been the first to disappear after the meeting. I pointedly walked down the corridor, which like every other part of this building, was panelled in wood. Though the place had most likely been built by humans–centaurs conducted all their meetings out in the open–the doorways and corridors were wide enough to accommodate centaurs.

“Apparently,” I said. “Is there anything else?”

“Only that I hope you enjoy the celebrations.”

By the strident sounds of what could only be centaur-music drifting through the open windows, he seemed to be right. Dammit. I wanted
off
this world.

After following the pathway to the mainland, I caught up to Markos at the clearing.

“What happened?” I asked.

The centaur raised an eyebrow. “By the gods, human, calm yourself down. My sister executed the traitors.”

“And the rest?” The king’s murder. Magi-tech. Damn. Why did there have to be so many people around? Crowds gathered under the trees. Every world’s council had brought at least three members, and it looked as though a few curious centaurs had wandered into the clearing, too. There hadn’t been that many of them at the meeting.

“I am returning to Central once I have sorted my affairs here, human. I’ll talk to you then.”

“Right.” I narrowed my eyes. “And Eidora gave in easily?”

“She’s always had a taste for leadership. Human, you don’t have to involve yourself here anymore.”

I shook my head. “It seems too easy.”

“My cousins think the occasion merits entertainment.”

Judging by the discordant sounds of some kind of harp screeching out over the forest, I’d figured that much out myself.

“Right,” I said. “I can’t say I’m a fan of this song… if it is one.”

“It’s appalling,” said Markos. “I never did like classical music.”

“I think Valeria’s train-wreck soundtrack is more like actual music,” I muttered, scanning the clearing for Ada. There were a few centaurs roaming around handing out glasses of what looked like wine.

“You’d better go, human. I’ll catch up to you.”

“Yeah.” I spotted Raj, who looked like he wanted to disappear as much as I did.

“Don’t drink the wine,” said Raj, as I caught up.

“What, you don’t think it’s poisoned?” I said this in an undertone, just in case.

“No, it’s potent as hell and makes you lose all reason. One glass and the next thing you know, you’re skinny-dipping in the river and have a hundred centaurs pointing their spears at you and threatening to have you arrested.”

“That didn’t happen to you… did it?”

The look on his face said it all. Despite everything, I laughed. “Really?”

“I’m surprised you haven’t heard the story yet. Even the council members like to tell that one at parties.”

“I can imagine.” I glanced around and caught sight of Ada, hovering awkwardly on the side-lines.

“We’re allowed to leave now, right?” I asked Raj.

“Sure hope so.”

I beckoned to Ada, who came over. A glass in her hand.

“Don’t drink that,” said Raj.

“Uh… why?”

“Because you’ll make an ass of yourself like this guy,” I said. “We need to go, anyway.”

Get back to Central. Deal with Ms Weston. And then… I didn’t know. Check up on the Conners. I was still no closer to figuring it all out.

“Mr Sanders said we have to wait for the council to leave first,” said Ada.

Raj sighed. “Typical.”

The last thing I wanted was to hang about this blasted forest. Ada set the wine glass down, but she swayed slightly already. Oh, crap.

“Kay?” She turned to me. “Can–can we talk? Alone?”

My eyebrows shot up. Seriously? This was neutral Alliance territory, so it was safe. In theory.

I kind of wasn’t paying much attention, though, because she’d taken hold of my hand.

“Don’t disappear on me,” she said.

“I wasn’t planning to.” Admittedly, I’d been tempted to go invisible and sneak out of the meeting, but it would have been a little conspicuous if people had seen me vanish into thin air. The irony.

“Good.” She pulled on my arm, and I was too surprised
not
to let her lead me after her, down one of the paths, until trees blocked our view of the clearing. I still heard the music, though, and I scanned the surroundings–nothing disturbed the leaves around us. We were alone.

“Ada…
how
much of that wine did you drink?”

“Don’t spoil it,” she muttered, turning around, still holding onto my left hand. The non-bandaged one, though it was still marked with half-healed cuts from the glass. Her eyes weren’t, as I’d expected, unfocused, but oddly clear.

“Ada…”

“Just kiss me.”

I could do nothing but gape at her before she’d thrown her arms around me and kissed me full on the mouth.

She tasted sweet, and it lit a fire in my veins. I knew she was probably half unaware of what she was doing–God knew this was a bad idea all around–but I kissed her back. It was impossible not to. My hands were moving of their own accord, one hand cupping the back of her head, the other sliding around her waist.

God. Damn.
This was way out of line. We were colleagues. She was half drunk… and trying to take off my jacket.

“Ada–”

She cut off my words by kissing me again, her hands now somehow inside my jacket and sliding under my shirt. The skin contact about drove me over the edge.

God
damn,
I wanted her.

Yeah, Kay, this is a seriously bad idea,
shouted what was left of rationality, but the part of my mind telling me that
was drowned out by the part which was more interested in how to get her out of that uniform.

A sudden
neigh
echoed around the forest, making the earpiece vibrate so loudly I jumped, and my head collided with a low-hanging branch, knocking me back to reality.

“What the hell?” I pushed the offending branch out the way. “What’s going on?”

Ada let go of me. “I can’t hear them…” She shook her head dazedly.

Damn. She was right. The music had stopped.

“There’s been an attack on the humans’ capital!” Markos yelled into the earpiece, almost deafening me.

“Jesus Christ.” I turned to Ada, who blinked at me.

“Kay?”

“Oh, shit,” I said intelligently. “Can you walk?”

“Of course I bloody can.” She took one step forward and tripped over a tree root. I caught her arm in time to stop her falling.

“We have to get back.” I felt like I’d been clobbered by a branch, and the throbbing lump on the back of my head reminded me that was exactly what had just happened. “What attacked the capital?” I said into the earpiece, beckoning Ada to follow me to the clearing.

“I have no idea, but it’s on the rampage,” said the centaur, and cursed loudly in Aglaian. “Where in the gods’ name
are
you, human?”

“Here,” I said, spotting him across the clearing. The council had scattered, and most of the centaurs had gone. Those who remained were arguing in groups.

“Go,” said Markos. “All non-Aglaians have to leave, before they blame you for it.”

“What?” I stared at him. “They can’t seriously blame us.”

“One of the council members took the obsidiate. It happened so fast.”

“
Where?”

Markos pointed, and I sprinted down the forest path. I’d cleared a hundred metres before it caught up with me that running into the forest alone was a damn
stupid
idea–but if someone had got hold of the source…

An explosion of sparks took me off my feet, my back slamming into the ground. My skin buzzed all over. Swearing, I stood, climbing over a tree root. Reddish smoke pointed me in the right direction.

Ikor the mage lay sprawled on the ground, as did the Valerian council member who’d taken the obsidiate. No, that wasn’t him. Not anymore. A fair-haired, sharply-dressed man got to his feet, dusting off his suit.

Bloodrock solution.

He had to be Aric’s father. And he held the obsidiate. Or what was left of it.

The mage trembled all over, and I recognised the tell-tale effects of magical aftershock. Magic burn.
Hellfire.
Ikor must have chased him down. Either the guy was on our side, or he wanted the obsidiate for himself.

I turned invisible, before either of them saw me. I had to get that source away from Conner. He’d already turned his back on the mage and was in the act of using what looked like a communicator. I aimed carefully to avoid the obsidiate and sent a bolt of magic at him from behind, hitting him square between the shoulder blades.

“What the devil–?”

“Close enough,” I said, and the side of my fist struck him down.
Great plan, Kay
. I hadn’t knocked him out, only dazed him, and the buzzing magic forced me to drop the invisibility. As he stirred, I zapped him with magic, kicking the communicator out of his hand. With difficulty–like his son, Conner Senior was built like a chalder vox in human skin–, I wrapped one arm around his neck and used the other to divest him of two Valerian-style guns. Couldn’t see any other weapons, but it was difficult enough to keep hold of him.