Final Magic (Harbinger P.I. Book 11), page 9
“Is everything okay? You seem…upset about something.”
He pointed at the TV screen. “I do not like this, Alec. I don’t like it at all.”
“The TV?”
“The images. The world is very different to how it was only a few hundred years ago. This is not good.”
I wasn’t sure what he was referring to. He’d been watching episodes of Suits. Maybe it was too modern for his tastes. Perhaps I should have let him watch Game of Thrones.
“I will get the Spear,” he said, going upstairs.
“What was all that about?” Felicity said.
“I have no idea.” I turned off the TV.
Feenan came back downstairs with the Spear.
“You ready?” I asked him.
He nodded, but seemed distracted.
We went out onto the driveway and Feenan got into the backseat of the Land Rover while I slid in behind the wheel. Felicity got into her rental—a red Ford Escape—and took off down the street.
I started the Land Rover and followed.
Feenan peered out of the windows at the houses in the neighborhood. “This place is not like the city on the TV. Is the place where Harvey Specter works real or made up for the stories?”
He’d obviously been paying attention to Suits. “You mean New York?”
Feenan nodded. “New York, yes.”
“It’s real.”
He sighed. “That’s what I was afraid of.”
I wasn’t sure what he meant by that. We drove through town and I pointed out my office building to break the silence that had fallen between us.
“That’s where I work,” I said.
He looked out of the window and nodded. “Much smaller than a New York city law firm.”
I let the silence resume and drove through town and onto the highway.
Feenan seemed interested in the traffic. “The iron carriages are called cars,” he mumbled to himself. Turning his attention to me, he said, “Alec, where are the horses?”
“We don’t really use horses anymore.”
“I see.” He went back to staring out of the window.
We left the highway and drove along the road that cut through the woods to Leon’s house. Felicity’s car was parked by the gate, which was closed.
I wound my window down. “Have you pressed the intercom?”
Felicity shook her head and grinned. “And woken Leon up? I thought I’d leave that to you.”
“Thanks.” I got out of the Land Rover and pressed the button.
After a couple of minutes, I pressed it again.
The intercom clicked and Leon’s voice came through the speaker. “Alec, what the hell, man? Do you know what time it is?”
“Can we come in, Leon? It’s important.”
“Yeah, of course.” The gate buzzed and swung open slowly. I heard Leon shout, “Michael, we need coffee,” and then the intercom went dead.
I got back into the Land Rover and drove up to the mansion, followed by Felicity’s Escape.
“Is this some sort of castle?” Feenan asked when he saw the house.
“No, this is my friend’s house.”
“Is he a king?”
“He’s very wealthy.”
We got out and went to the front door, which was already open. Michael stood in the hallway, dressed in black trousers, a white shirt with rolled up sleeves, and a black tie. “Good morning,” he said as we entered the house. “Coffee will be served shortly.”
“Thanks, Michael,” I said.
Leon came downstairs, wearing jeans and a Space Invaders T-shirt. “I thought you guys were in France,” he said. He looked at Feenan suspiciously. “Who is this guy?”
“This is Feenan.” I turned to Feenan and said, “These are my friends Leon and Michael.”
“Whoa,” Leon said. “What the hell was that? You just spoke to him in a weird language.”
“Does he wish to converse with me?” Feenan asked.
“Yeah, it’d be easier for everyone if you cast that spell on him and Michael.”
“Very well.” He went over to Leon and reached for his face.
Leon dodged Feenan’s hand. “What the hell?”
“Let him touch your mouth,” I said. “It allows you to speak his language.”
Leon looked dubious but let Feenan place his hand over his mouth. Feenan did the same to Michael and then said, “Now we may all speak the language of the trees, rivers, and stones.”
“No, now you’re talking English,” Leon said.
“I am not,” Feenan told him. “You only think I am because now you understand me.”
Leon arched an eyebrow. “Okay, I’ll buy that. What are you guys doing here?”
“It’s a long story,” I said, “but I’ll gladly tell you over coffee.”
“Do you have a television?” Feenan asked.
Leon nodded. “Yes, of course.”
“May I look at it?”
“I guess so. Michael, take him to the Rec Room.”
“Yes, sir.” The butler turned to Feenan and said, “This way, sir.”
“Don’t let him watch Suits,” I said. “It upsets him.”
They went through a door to the Recreation Room where Leon had a TV, arcade machines, a foosball table, and air hockey.
“I need coffee,” Leon said, heading to the kitchen. “And you need to explain to me how that guy just cast a spell in a world with no magic.”
Two pots of coffee later, we’d told Leon and Michael—who had left Keenan in front of the TV in the other room—about our trip to France, the secret door at Fontenay Abbey, the Spear Room, and everything Feenan had told us back at my place.
“So, let me get this straight,” Leon said, looking at me. “You knew the Spear of Destiny was there the all this time and you didn’t think to mention it to anybody?”
“I told you, I had my memory wiped by the Satori. I didn’t remember anything about it.”
“Until you went to the British Museum and cast a spell in front of a statue. You remembered it after that.”
I nodded. “It wasn’t something I could risk the Cabal—or even the Society—knowing, so I didn’t tell anyone. I wanted the Spear to remain hidden. It’s too dangerous.”
“And now it’s leaning against my Rec Room wall while a Druid watches TV.”
“He isn’t a Druid,” Felicity said.
“Oh, that’s right. He’s older than the Druids. He’s one of the People of the Circle, whatever that means.”
“We don’t have all the answers,” I said.
“I don’t expect you to have all the answers.” He sighed. “It’s just that there was an adventure and I missed out.”
“We didn’t know it was going to be an adventure,” Felicity said. “As far as we knew, we were just going to dig up the Spear and find a new hiding place for it.”
“I know. I just get so bored lately. Now that magic’s gone, everything is just so…flat.”
“You’re part of the adventure now,” I said. “We brought Feenan here.”
“So what happens next? What are we going to do with the guy? He can’t sit there watching TV forever; his brain’ll melt.”
“That’s what we need to figure out,” Felicity said. “We have to…” Her words trailed away and she leaned against the kitchen counter for support. “I’m not feeling very well. I—“
She dropped her mug on the floor and it shattered, the pieces skittering over the tiles. Felicity sagged against the counter and slid down the kitchen cupboards until she was sitting on the floor.
“Felicity!” I rushed over to her and supported her head before she hit it on the floor. “What’s wrong?”
Her words were breathy, barely a whisper. “Alec, I’m not feeling very well.” She closed her eyes and lost consciousness.
“Call an ambulance!” I shouted to no one in particular.
“I’m on it,” Leon said, grabbing his phone.
“That will do no good,” a voice said from the doorway.
I turned to see Feenan standing there. He came forward and crouched down next to Felicity, brushing her hair away from her ear.
He gently maneuvered her head so he could see behind the ear and said, “The transformation sickness is upon her. Taking her to a hospital is pointless. No doctor can help her.”
“What do we do?” I asked him, feeling helpless.
“The only thing to be done now is to make sure she is comfortable.”
“We’ll take her to one of the guest bedrooms,” Leon said. “Then we’ll figure out how to help her.”
Feenan stepped back and Leon and I carried Felicity to the foot of the wide staircase, then up to the next floor. Leon opened the nearest door and said, “In here.”
The large room had a king size bed. We laid Felicity on top of the sheets and I made sure the pillows were under her head.
We stepped back and looked at her. At least her breathing seemed to be steady; her chest rose and fell with a steady, regular rhythm.
“Alec,” Leon said, “is she going to transform into a faerie creature and die?”
“Not if I can help it,” I told him. “I’ll do anything to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Chapter 13
“This is the Cabal’s fault,” I said to Leon as we went back downstairs. “Them and their damned experiment.”
Feenan was standing at the foot of the stairs with Michael. “How is she?” he asked.
“Unconscious.”
He nodded and wandered away, seemingly lost in thought.
“What are we going to do?” Leon said.
“I’m going to contact Jillian Duval. Maybe the Cabal has an antidote.”
“You think she’ll give it to you?”
“If she doesn’t I’ll tear down her entire organization.”
He put his hands on my shoulders. “Okay, Alec, listen to me. We all love Felicity, and none of us wants to see her come to any harm, but we have to stay calm. Letting our emotions get the better of us isn’t going to help her.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “You’re right. But I’m still going to contact Jillian.”
“Of course. All I’m saying is you need to stay level-headed when you talk to her.”
I nodded. “I will.”
“Remember, Feenan has magic. Even if he can’t halt the sickness, maybe he can slow it down or something. I’ll see if there’s anything he can do.”
“Is there anything I can do, sir?” Michael asked.
“You could check on Felicity,” Leon told him. “Stay with her. Maybe she’ll wake up.”
“Very good, sir.” He went upstairs to the guest room.
Leon went into the Rec Room, where Feenan was watching TV. I pulled my phone out of my pocket to discover I had eight more missed calls. I’d put the phone on silent when we were on the plane, so at least the damn thing hadn’t been constantly buzzing.
I called Jillian Duval.
“Alec, do you know what time it is? But then, I suppose you’re on French time.”
So the Cabal knew about our trip to France.
“Jillian, I need to know if there’s an antidote for Project Shapeshifter.”
“An antidote?”
“Something that can stop the transformation.”
“The only way to help someone who is transforming is to bring Faerie magic back so they don’t die when they fully transform. But you can’t stop the transformation itself.”
“There has to be a way,” I said.
“Let me guess; one of your loved ones is transforming. Is that correct?”
I hesitated, thought about telling her it was none of her business, then finally relented and said, “Yes.”
“Well, that should make saving the world a little easier then, shouldn’t it? There’s no motivation like personal stakes.”
“So, you’re telling me that no matter what I do, the transformation will take place?”
“That’s right. But you can decide if your loved one—along with millions of other people’s loved ones—transforms and lives, or transforms and dies horribly. I know you have something up your sleeve, Alec. You didn’t go to France just to have a dirty weekend with your ex-assistant. Whatever your plan is, you might want to think about implementing it sooner rather than later.”
I hesitated, unsure what to say.
“The clock’s ticking, Alec.” She hung up.
“Alec, you might want to see this,” Leon called from the Rec Room.
I went in there to find Feenan and Leon both standing in front of the TV. The News was on, and the anchorman was saying, “No one seems to know what this illness is, or where it came from, but there are thousands of people displaying symptoms. Hospitals are at breaking point already. The advice being given to everyone at the moment is to stay at home and isolate yourself from others in your household. And we’re getting reports that the sickness is affecting people all over the world.”
“It is beginning,” Feenan said. “The sickness that ravages the world has begun, just as I prophesied it would.”
“Thanks for that,” Leon said.
“I did not cause this. I merely saw it coming.”
“Is there anything you can do for Felicity?” I asked.
“I cannot stop the transformation, Alec.”
“Is there some way you can slow the process, at least?”
He pursed his lips while he thought. “Perhaps I can do something. It will not halt the process but it may weaken it.”
“Anything,” I said. “Anything that gives us more time.”
“Come with me.”
We went upstairs to the guest bedroom. Michael was sitting in a chair by the window. Felicity was still unconscious on the bed.
Feenan walked over to her and placed his hands in the air above her face. He closed his eyes and concentrated.
“Three days,” he said softly.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“The transformation will take place in three days.”
“But you can do something to help her, right?” Leon asked. “You said you could help her.”
“I can only alter the nature of the transformation. It will still occur in three days.”
“Alter it in what way?” I asked. I wasn’t sure what he had in mind, and I needed to make sure that any intervention he performed wouldn’t make things worse for Felicity.
“The transformation will still take place, but it will be weakened.”
Leon frowned. “What does that mean, exactly?”
“I cannot be certain.”
Leon threw up his arms and turned away to the window. “Great!”
Feenan turned to me. “Alec, shall I go ahead and perform the spell?”
“She’ll still change in three days.”
“Yes.”
“And if the connection to Faerie isn’t established, she’ll still die?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“So what’s the point?”
“If Faerie magic is restored, then—unlike the others who transform—Felicity will not remain in her faerie state forever.”
I thought about it. The transformation would take place in three days no matter what and Felicity would either become a faerie creature and die, become a faerie creature and live as one forever, or—if Feenan’s spell worked—become a faerie creature for a limited time only.
“Do it,” I said.
“Very well.” He closed his eyes again and his hands hovered above Felicity’s body as he muttered words in a language that not even the communication spell could translate into English.
A light blue mist formed in the space between Feenan’s hands and Felicity’s solar plexus. It pulsed and writhed in the air.
Sweat broke out on Feenan’s forehead. His lips thinned and his brow furrowed. His hands and fingers trembled.
The trembling spread along his arms and into his chest. He let out a low whimper. Sweat rolled down his face, which had now taken on a pained expression.
This went on for a couple of minutes, by which time, Feenan was trembling all over and breathing hard. His eyes opened and he stumbled back from the bed, slamming into the wall and sliding down it.
The blue mist vanished.
“Are you okay?” I said, going to him.
“That was not like reversing a magical spell,” he said. “It was something much more difficult.”
“You were trying to re-engineer her genes,” I said. “The transformation is genetic.”
“I did not like it. I did not like it at all.”
“Did it work?”
He looked at Felicity and shook his head slowly. “I do not know. We will find out when the transformation occurs.”
That wasn’t good enough for me. “You and I need to talk about the Spear and how we’re going to use it to reopen the connection to Faerie.”
He looked horrified. “Alec, you don’t know what you’re asking.”
“That’s going to have to wait,” Leon said from the window. “We’ve got company.”
As he spoke, I could hear the whir of helicopter blades outside. I went to the window. A black chopper was touching down on the lawn.
The door opened and Feldman got out. He took a phone out of his jacket pocket and tapped on it.
My phone buzzed. I had a text from Feldman.
WE KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE. COME WITH US. WE NEED TO TALK.
I sighed with resignation. The Society had obviously found the BMW at Fontenay Abbey and put two and two together.
“They want me to go with them,” I said to Leon. “It’s the Society.”
“They can go to Hell.”
“I admire the attitude, but maybe I can get them to help us. If I tell them about Project Shapeshifter, maybe they can find a cure.”
He looked over at Felicity on the bed and nodded. “Okay, man. Whatever it takes.”
I touched him on the shoulder briefly before going downstairs and out the door.
Feldman grinned when he saw me. “So you’re not going to cause any trouble?” he shouted above the whine of the chopper blades.
“Why would I?”
We got into the helicopter. Hope was in there. He handed out flight helmets.
I put mine on and Feldman’s voice came through the built-in speakers.
“We found your car in France, Alec. We also found the underground room beneath the abbey. Why didn’t you tell us about that?”
