The Anxiety of Kalix the Werewolf (29 page)

Vex looked uncertain. “Well, sort of. It's quite difficult—”

“Your flatmates manage it. Take me to this piece of equipment and let me see your progress.”

The Fire Queen marched toward the stairs. Agrivex, looking quite deflated, followed her toward her room in the attic.

“Poor Vex,” said Daniel after they'd gone. “Obviously it was a bad time to announce her boyfriend.”

Moonglow nodded. “Malveria's in a really bad mood. Something's happened between her and Thrix.”

Daniel sat on the couch and refilled both of their teacups. He took a biscuit from the tray.

“It'll probably be OK in the end,” said Moonglow. “Malveria usually calms down fairly quickly.”

Daniel nodded. At that moment there was a terrible explosion upstairs and the whole house shook. Plaster from the ceiling rained down on their heads. The cat wailed and darted under the table. There was another explosion, this time sending dust and smoke into the living room. Kalix came running out of her bedroom and leaped to the foot of the stairs.

“What's happening?” she cried, but her voice was lost in the sound of another explosion. Moonglow was frozen with terror. Daniel grabbed her and bundled her out of the living room into the hallway. Kalix picked up the cat and followed them. Daniel opened their front door and hauled Moonglow down the stairs. Behind them the flat shook as another explosion ripped through the building. Daniel and Moonglow threw themselves down and lay huddling on the stairs. Kalix and the cat fell on top of them. They heard another terrific explosion. This one seemed further away, but it was strong enough to bring down more plaster from the ceiling.

“Are we under attack?” cried Moonglow.

“I think it's the Fire Queen,” said Daniel. “She's gone mad.”

“Why? Vex can't have been that bad on the computer.”

Another explosion tore through the air above them, almost deafening them with its ferocity. Kalix flinched as the cat dug its claws into her; Moonglow moaned. Daniel put his arm around her and tried to shield her as debris rained down. They lay huddled together in the hallway, waiting for the terrible experience to pass, and hoping they might survive it.

CHAPTER 52

There was a brief, stunned silence after the final explosion.

“Has it stopped?” gasped Moonglow.

“Help, help!” came a voice.

“It's Vex!” said Daniel. He hurried back upstairs into the flat, followed by Kalix and Moonglow. Vex was standing in the living room, apparently unharmed but distressed.

“Aunt Malvie's gone mad! She started exploding all over the place!” Vex paused. “Don't look at me like that. It wasn't my fault.”

“What did you do to drive her mad?” demanded Daniel, voicing what the others were thinking.

“I didn't do anything! I was just telling her about my boyfriend and then she wanted me to try producing flames, which I couldn't, and then she just started exploding!”

“It doesn't seem enough to make Malveria lose her reason,” said Moonglow.

“I don't know,” said Daniel. “Vex can be very irritating.”

“Was there anything else?” asked Moonglow.

Vex's bright yellow hair was a dull gray from plaster that had descended from the ceilings. She tried to remember what else had been said.

“Aunt Malvie wanted to see if I could use my computer, so I was showing her how great I am using it, and we looked at some manga, and then some Japanese fashion, and then she wanted to see if there was anything about
Vogue
, so I went to the
Vogue
webpage . . .”

Vex looked thoughtful. “And you know, it was right then that Aunt Malvie exploded.”

The flatmates were mystified. Moonglow crossed over to the table where her own laptop had fortunately been closed at the time of the explosions. She blew off the dust then searched for the website of British
Vogue
.

“‘On set with Chanel—new street chic,'” she said, reading from the page. “‘Our pick of the best summer shoes'—what's this?”

Moonglow clicked on a link while Daniel, Vex and Kalix craned to read over her shoulder.

“Fashionable party people,” said Moonglow. “Who's been out and about this week in London. Famous society beauty Señorita Kabachetka,
seen here at Tuesday's reception with editor Emily St. Claire. Señorita Kabachetka, heir to a huge gold-mining fortune in Brazil, will be sponsoring this year's St. Amelia's Ball.”

Moonglow looked up. “Well, that explains it.”

“What?” asked Daniel.

“Kabachetka's beaten her into the ‘fashionable party people' page.”

“Is that serious?”

“Serious? Have you never heard Malveria talk about it? It's her one ambition to get herself into that page.”

“It's true,” said Vex. “I've always thought it was a bit frivolous really.”

Everyone stared at the screen, where the Empress Kabachetka, in the guise of a South American heiress, looked blonde, happy and fashionable.

“Where's your aunt now?” asked Kalix.

Vex shrugged. “I'm not sure. I was hiding under the bed. I think she went outside and exploded some more.”

“Will she be all right?” asked Moonglow.

At that moment there came a sound like thunder: the fiercest, most earth-splitting thunder ever heard in the city. The whole street vibrated. There was another terrible crash as the Fire Queen materialized at the top of the room, hurtling downward. She smashed into the couch, which collapsed in flames, then lay motionless among the wreckage.

“Well, I've seen her better,” said Vex.

Moonglow, Daniel, Kalix and Vex gathered around in concern.

“Wake up, Aunty!” said Vex.

There was no response. Moonglow became very worried. “I think we should get a doctor,” she said.

“How?” asked Daniel. “We can't call nine nine nine and say we've got an injured Fire Elemental in the house.”

“I didn't mean a human doctor,” said Moonglow. “An elemental doctor. Vex, you have doctors, right?”

Vex nodded. “Aunt Malvie's got her own doctor. He's famous. He lives in the palace.”

“Could you bring him here?”

The young Fire Elemental frowned. “I'm not sure. Most Hiyastas don't like to come to Earth. They don't like the journey.”

But Vex, who up till now had been expecting her aunt to suddenly sit up and be normal again, became worried. The Fire Queen, lying among the ruins of the couch, showed no signs of movement.

“I'll get the doctor,” said Vex, and disappeared into thin air.

“I'll get a blanket,” said Moonglow.

“Is that a good idea?” wondered Daniel. “Isn't the Queen made of fire? What if she overheats?”

“I don't like to just leave her lying there,” said Moonglow. “We have to do something.”

Moonglow hurried off upstairs to bring a blanket for the Fire Queen. Daniel surveyed the room, which was in a poor state. Apart from the shattered couch, everything was covered in fine dust, and there were cracks and scorch marks on the ceiling. Kalix wondered what she could do to help. Though she had never felt much affinity with the Fire Queen, she knew she owed her life to Malveria's powers of healing.

“Maybe she'd like a glass of water,” she said, and went to the kitchen to run the tap.

Daniel sat down beside the Queen and placed his hand gently on her arm, in what he hoped was a comforting way. Soon the Queen lay under a blanket, with a glass of water beside her, and three anxious flatmates watching over her, waiting for Vex to arrive with an elemental doctor from another dimension.

CHAPTER 53

The mood at the Avenaris Guild was brighter than it had been for many months. The gloom caused by the death of Captain Easterly had pervaded the whole organization, but now there was optimism in every part of the building. First there had been the good news about the legacy from the Countess of Nottingham. Using that money, Mr. Carmichael had moved quickly to replace the hunters they'd lost. The Guild was reinvigorated. The assassination of Minerva MacRinnalch had been a fine start. Even if she had not been a well-known werewolf, any success in the Scottish Highlands, where the MacRinnalchs were so strong, was regarded as a triumph. And now the same squadron, Group Sixteen, had scored a great coup by killing all three Douglas-MacPhees. The operation had gone as smoothly as anyone could have hoped for. The four hunters had tracked the Douglas-MacPhees in London and then swiftly eliminated them. There was celebration at their headquarters. Mr. Carmichael had silenced his detractors.

The chairman of the board personally congratulated his four new recruits on their successful mission. He met Stone, Marshall, Braid and Axelsen in his son's office, and told him how proud the Guild was of their achievement.

“The Douglas-MacPhees were three of the strongest werewolves ever to infest London. You've eliminated them in a brilliant operation without sustaining a single casualty. It's one of our greatest moments.”

The four members of Group Sixteen accepted Mr. Carmichael's praise without exhibiting any great degree of emotion. They knew there were stronger werewolves than the Douglas-MacPhees. Royston, who was responsible for most of their intelligence, had immersed himself in the Guild's records. He'd briefed his companions on some of the werewolves they were likely to meet.

John Carmichael's office contained the same mixture of furnishings that characterized the Guild's headquarters: a Georgian mahogany bookcase in the corner, a metal filing cabinet from the '60s next to the door and a brand-new computer on his desk. On the screen was a file with pictures of each of the Douglas-MacPhees. Below each picture, the word “eliminated” had been added.

“When will our next mission be?” asked Marshall.

“Soon,” Mr. Carmichael told him. “We're still gathering intelligence.”

“I don't like waiting,” said Braid.

Mr. Carmichael nodded. He knew Braid to be a fine hunter. He also knew he was a very violent man—more violent, probably, than most of their hunters. He'd been dishonorably discharged from the army. Mr. Carmichael had read the report.

“Don't worry, you'll be in action again soon. I warned you that some of these werewolves have extra protection. Sorcery, so it's said. But we've got people on our side now who can deal with that. We'll find them.”

Mr. Carmichael leaned over the desk and tapped some keys on the computer. A blurry photograph, taken in the street at a distance, came up on-screen. A young woman, her face partially hidden, with a long coat and very long hair.

“The werewolf princess,” said Royston, who'd read all that the Guild had on Kalix MacRinnalch.

Mr. Carmichael nodded. “She's been very hard to find. But we're getting closer.”

Braid leaned closer to the screen. “I'd like to meet her,” he said.

CHAPTER 54

Many MacRinnalchs had never regarded Markus as a suitable candidate for Thane. The same was true among the smaller clans associated with the MacRinnalchs—the MacAllisters, MacPhees, MacGregors and MacAndrises. After Markus's victory in the election, the animosity toward him gradually ebbed away. This was largely due to the astute politicking of his mother Verasa. The Mistress of the Werewolves had many years' experience in placating dissatisfied werewolves. It helped that Markus had defeated the huge Wallace MacGregor in single combat. The fight had been witnessed by many werewolves, and it had proved that Markus did not lack either strength or spirit.

Markus was now secure in his position. Only some terrible blunder on his part could lead to anyone questioning his authority.

“Markus, is that webcam on?” asked Beatrice.

“Uh . . . I'm not sure,” said Markus.

Beatrice slammed the laptop shut. “You have to be more careful!” she said. “Your mother was on the other end of that webcam not five minutes ago!”

Beatrice was angry. “If you don't care about being run out of the castle, I do. I need my job.”

Beatrice MacRinnalch was assistant keeper of the archives at Castle MacRinnalch, and in line for promotion to chief curator. She was also one of Markus's two girlfriends, the other of whom was standing next to them, partially dressed, with a safety pin in her mouth as she made adjustments to Markus's long blue dress.

Heather MacAllister took the safety pin out of her mouth. “Beatrice is right. If the clan catches you wearing a dress with two half-naked girlfriends beside you, you'll be the shortest-reigning Thane in history.”

Markus was grinning. “Maybe they'd be impressed.”

“They won't be. Baron MacAllister would chase me out of Scotland. I'm his grand-niece and he has standards.”

Markus was standing in front of a long mirror in the living room of his Edinburgh flat. His two girlfriends were adjusting his dress.