The Rise of Isaac, Books 1-3, page 75
“Eugene,” Ely breathed.
16
The Felon Fox
Eugene was a bag of nerves. His whole body constantly trembled and he jumped at the slightest movement.
“Why have you destroyed my door?” he asked in a voice that was so soft Oliver barely heard it.
“I'm, er, sorry. I was just taking precautions,” Ely said.
“From what?” Eugene asked in that same low voice that suggested he didn't want anyone to overhear him, even the people he was talking to.
“Nothing. My apologies,” Ely said, casting light over the broken door so it repaired and reattached itself to the doorframe.
Eugene backed away into the house at the sight of the magic. “Come in,” he whispered.
They followed Eugene and found themselves in a narrow hallway lit by a dim lamp in one corner. Eugene hovered near a crooked wooden staircase then led them through a door beside it.
A large candle lit the room which was void of all other light. A small, circular table sat at its centre, stacked high with heaps of books and newspapers, many of which had been cut up. The articles lay scattered across the table.
“Let me brighten this place up a little,” Ely said, raising his palms.
“No,” Eugene hissed. “Please. No magic. I am, a little, apprehensive of it these days.”
Ely nodded and lowered his hands, balling them into fists by his sides.
“Take a seat,” Eugene said, hurriedly gathering the articles up from the table.
Oliver glanced at them and caught headlines about Rimori. Eugene placed them carefully in a pile on the floor then joined them at the table.
A clock ticked loudly on the wall.
“Ah I recognise that clock,” Ely said, gazing fondly at the grand, golden timepiece.
“Yes, it's from home,” Eugene said, nodding. “Err, Oakway that is,” he added, looking away from Ely.
They sat quietly for a moment and Eugene gazed across the table at Oliver. His eyes traced his face so thoroughly that it made Oliver physically shift in his seat.
“I know you,” Eugene said, slightly more confidently.
“You do?” Oliver asked.
“You're my nephew. I saw you race,” he said then glanced at May. “And you.”
May smiled warmly at him.
“May,” Eugene said, shifting his full attention to her.
She continued to smile but her eyes flitted to Oliver then Ely as if asking for their help.
“So, Eugene, how are you settling back into normal life?” Ely smiled briefly.
“Normal?” Eugene breathed the word with a grimace like it tasted sour in his mouth. “Nothing's normal anymore.”
“No, I suppose not,” Ely said slowly. “Well, you've served your sentence. You paid for your crime.”
Oliver immediately sensed the tension in the room as Eugene's eyes snapped to Ely. It was a small movement but there was something deadly in it.
“I saw my friend die. Brutally,” Eugene said with a snarl, no longer sounding shy.
“But he's not dead. William's alive,” Ely countered. “Why don't you tell us the real story. How did you all manage it? Why bother to fake his death?”
“Fake it? FAKE IT?” Eugene slammed his fists down onto the wood, making the candle bounce on the table. His whole face was transformed. Some past memory was playing in his head, Oliver was sure of it. He was no longer present, just wide-eyed and haunted.
The graffiti from the wall flashed into Oliver's mind. William's return must have thrown Eugene's account of his murder under suspicion and a flash of pity ran through him at the thought.
May lightly touched Eugene's arm and he flinched, withering back into the frightened man he had been moments ago. He gazed down at his quivering hands on the table.
“Perhaps we should go,” May suggested quietly.
Eugene's gaze snapped up to meet hers. “No. You mustn't,” he pleaded in a quiet voice. His eyes flicked between Oliver and May once more then steadied on May.
“There's a reason we came,” Oliver said boldly. “You must know what Rimori did to May.”
“What Rimori did to her? Isaac?” Eugene asked slowly.
Oliver nodded.
“We think May is magically linked to Rimori,” Ely said, his voice stilted as if he were struggling to contain his feelings.
A frown engulfed Eugene's face. “She is.”
“Then you must know how to help her!” Oliver said, eagerly leaning towards him.
"Help her?" he repeated, glancing at May once more.
"Can you?" May asked, her eyes burning with a hopeful desperation.
"You were meant to die," Eugene said, staring at her intently.
"That's not an answer," Ely growled dangerously.
"No but it is a fact," Eugene said, his rectangular glasses slipping down his sweaty nose.
"Do you know why I didn't die?" May asked softly.
Eugene took in a breath as he surveyed her, pushing his glasses back into place. "It's quite the puzzle."
"But can you help?" Oliver pressed.
“Yes. I can. I can help her,” he said, nodding.
“You can?” May asked, her eyes widening with delight.
“Yes, come with me,” he said, standing and holding out a hand to her.
Oliver stood first.
“Just May,” Eugene said instantly.
“No,” Oliver replied, equally fast.
Eugene gazed at him for a moment then shrugged. “Just the two of you then.”
Ely stood but was still dwarfed by Eugene's towering frame. “Even if you had a century to do so, there isn't a sentence you could piece together that would stop me coming with my grandchildren.”
“I can tell you're suspicious,” Eugene said slowly. “But I am merely trying to save you all the trouble of cramming into the small room that is my kitchen.”
They followed him through the house and entered the kitchen. It was, as promised, tiny. Oliver pressed up against May and she against Ely who had his jaw set stubbornly as he watched Eugene. The man began boiling something on a tiny stove in the only spare space in the room.
After nearly ten minutes of heating, the pot was barely steaming.
"A watched pot never boils," Eugene said quietly, chuckling softly at his own joke.
"Oh for goodness sake just let me use magic," Ely snapped.
Eugene winced but nodded, stepping as far away as he could from the stove. Ely cast an orange flame at the pan which dissolved into the water, making it bubble and hiss as it instantly boiled.
Eugene took out four mugs from a cupboard to his right and rinsed dust from them in the small sink beside the stove.
"Tea?" he offered.
"Excuse me?" Ely asked abruptly.
"I, er, was making tea," Eugene said quietly.
"I don't know what game you're playing, boy, but you'd better set to work breaking this link on May or, so help me, I will force you to do it," Ely said, his eyebrows knitting together in anger.
Eugene nodded and cleared his throat. "The thing is..."
Ely glared at him.
"I haven't done magic in a long time. Almost ten years in fact. I'm a little rusty. And that link on May...it's tricky magic. I don't remember the spell. It was complicated."
"You put it on me?" May asked in a small voice.
Eugene eyed her guiltily. "I was against it. Everything to do with you, in fact." His voice was laced with regret.
"You didn't have to do it," Oliver said, forcing himself to keep his temper under control.
"I did though, Oliver. Oh, you don't know the half of it. If only I could explain." He looked pained like the secrets he held were creatures trying to burrow their way out of his skin.
"Then explain. You owe May that much," Ely said, grimacing at his son.
Oliver wondered if Ely hated Eugene. It reminded him of the way he regarded his own father. A nagging doubt inside him spoke of some other feeling for William Knight but he forced the thought away.
"May could die because of you," Oliver said, keeping his voice steady so as not to frighten Eugene.
Eugene nodded, momentarily hiding his features with his grisly hair. "I cannot- I do not remember. Or perhaps I never knew how to reverse the link. I learnt it from Dorian Ganderfield's notes. We spent months filling in the gaps, altering the words, testing the link on creatures of all manner." He ran his shaking hands through his greasy hair, pushing it away from his face.
"Eugene," May said softly, lightly touching his arm with the tips of her fingers.
Eugene's body stopped trembling and he looked up at May, his eyes filling with sadness.
"Can you tell me where I came from? Do you remember?" May asked, the need to know apparent in her voice.
Oliver hadn't expected the question but gazed at Eugene curiously.
Eugene nodded and swallowed. "Yes, well, no. I mean, I have limited information. William, your father-" he eyed Oliver, "-brought you to me one day. We were staying in an abandoned flat in Barlin. It was risky. We had to keep our heads down. I told Isaac we were better off staying on one of the less populated islands but he wouldn't listen. He kept going on about a suitable candidate. It was only when William mentioned the word orphanage that I realised what we were about to do. William and Isaac came back to the flat one day with you, May: a little blonde girl sleeping in his arms."
May touched a lock of her hair as if it were the only thing that connected her to the girl in the story.
"What happened then?" Oliver asked, his heartbeat rapidly increasing. The idea of someone hurting May made the hairs on his body bristle like a defensive animal's.
"I panicked," Eugene said, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "I didn't want to go through with it. You have to believe me. But Isaac was so, so persuasive. He scared me. So I linked you to him."
The words hung in the air. The truth they already knew but somehow still haunted the space between them.
"But you were supposed to die when Isaac returned from Vale. Perhaps I cast the spell wrong," Eugene said. "What symptoms do you have?"
"Just pain in my chest. Sometimes it's overwhelming. We met a mage back in Aleva who put a strong spell on it to keep it under control. But I don't know how long it will last. I almost died the first time it appeared."
"Almost? Would it have killed you, do you think?" Eugene asked curiously.
"I don't know," May said. "I think eventually it will, yes."
"How long do you think it will hold for?" Eugene asked, leaning forward.
"Why does it matter?" Ely snapped.
"I was merely curious..." Eugene trailed off. "Have you found no other mage who can help you?"
Oliver met Ely's eye briefly, confirming his own thoughts that they should tell Eugene nothing of Wallace's work.
"No," Oliver cut in before May could answer.
She glanced his way but didn't contradict him.
The graffiti sprang to mind again and Oliver looked at Eugene warily, no longer feeling sorry for him. "Why have people written liar on your wall outside?"
Eugene hunched his shoulders as if the word had stung him.
"They call me a liar because I told the world William died. But he isn't dead. Yet I saw it."
Oliver sensed there was something else he was holding back but couldn't imagine what. "Is that the only reason?"
"Some people suggested I had a hand in William's death..." Eugene met his eye and almost became stern for a moment. "But I didn't," he said firmly.
17
A Rising Fear
Ten Years Ago
Eugene was pacing back and forth across the small, dark room. He had trodden a worn path on the dusty floor from his pacing and his heart was thumping erratically in his ribcage.
"What's the matter with you?" William asked from the tattered armchair in the corner.
"This isn't right. What we've done. It's illegal," Eugene whispered, taking his glasses off to rub the sweat from his forehead.
"What, the part where we kidnapped a child or the part where you performed illegal magic?" William asked, smiling.
"You mean you. You kidnapped that little girl," Eugene accused, pointing at him. He couldn't take responsibility for it, it was too much to bear.
William got to his feet, his face falling. "And you cast the spell on her that linked her to Isaac. Don't try placing the blame on me, we're all in this together."
"Well maybe I don't want to be a part of it anymore. You've seen how he is. Isaac's not the same person we met at university. He scares me, Will." Eugene's heart hammered with fear, his body tense.
"Nonsense, he's our friend. You wanted this as much as he did."
"That was before it all got so, real." Eugene began pacing again. His hand shook as he ran it through his long, sweaty hair.
"Eugene, calm down."
"You kidnapped a child, Will," he said, pointing at him again.
William walked towards him and slapped his hand away. "Stop it. It wasn't like that. We had to choose someone unattached. No one will search too hard for a missing orphan. Alison will look after her."
Eugene's mouth twitched as he hesitated. "But why her? Why didn't we pick someone worthy of death? A murderer, o-or something."
William's eyes darkened. "It needs to be someone we can protect until Isaac returns from Vale. This makes the most sense. We have to make sacrifices for the greater good."
Eugene absorbed the words. Perhaps what they'd done was acceptable. If it meant they could bring down the Gateways then surely one life was worth that. "Her life will be brief but I suppose Alison will look after her..." Eugene said, swallowing.
"Course she will." William moved forward and put his arm around Eugene's shoulders. "This will all be worth it in the end. We just need to keep calm and continue with the plan."
Eugene nodded, his heartbeat beginning to slow. "You're right, I know. I just panicked when I saw the girl. I mean, we're not bad people are we?"
"No, don't think like that. We do what we have to to reach our goal. Let's just take things one step at a time."
"What's the next step then?" Eugene asked tentatively.
"We go to Arideen."
"Already? Shouldn't we wait?" Everything was happening so fast and Eugene wasn't sure he was ready.
"For what? You linked Isaac. He's ready to go to Vale."
"He won't get through Vale's Gateway without..." He wet his dry lips, suppressing the fear that was creeping into his chest.
William let go of Eugene and looked at his friend. "What? You think Isaac would do that? Or I would?"
"I don't know anymore. Not you, of course not you. But Isaac-"
William grabbed Eugene by the material at his shoulders. "Look at me. Look. At. Me."
Eugene hesitantly gazed up into William's dark eyes, fear blossoming in his chest.
"Isaac is our friend," he spat the last word, making Eugene wince.
William softened and let go of him. "We all need to stay together on this." He walked back over to the armchair and sat down, his anger visibly receding.
"You won't tell him, will you? What I said," Eugene asked, his voice shaking.
"You didn't say anything. It's what you're thinking that worries me," William said, pulling at a few loose strands on the arm of the chair.
"Will, please. I'm just worried. That little girl-"
William cut him off. "That girl is our only chance of this succeeding. We have to make sacrifices. She is fine."
"For how long?" he asked angrily. "I don't want her death on my conscience, do you?"
William didn't answer. He shook his head and rubbed his eyes. "Eugene, it's necessary. It had to be this way. I don't want this any more than you do, but it's the only way to ensure Isaac gets back from Vale unharmed."
"We could call it all off. We don't need to do this." The thought filled him with hope. If he could slip quietly back into his old life, he would. But he was so far down this path he wasn't sure if it was possible.
"Don't talk like that. I don't wanna hear it any more, Eugene. You're either with us or you're not, but you'd better decide right now because you're already in deep. And you can tell Isaac why you're leaving because I certainly won't do it for you."
Eugene took a few deep breaths before he answered. He sighed, his thoughts of running away abandoning him. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying. I just panicked."
"Good, I wouldn't want you to miss out on this. We're gonna make history."
Eugene heard a click of the door downstairs and Isaac entered the room a moment later holding a bundle of takeaway boxes.
"Who's hungry?" he asked, smiling. He looked at their faces and frowned, clearly sensing the tension. "What's going on?"
Eugene gazed at William with a pleading look.
"Damn neighbours came knocking again. Gave us a scare. We should move on from here tonight," William said, taking a box from Isaac.
"Ah, you're right. On to Arideen?" he said, grinning.
"You bet," Eugene said with a smile that he hoped looked convincing.
18
The Missing
Larkin walked back to the hotel. After searching for Quinn around the city, asking at hotels and inns with no luck, he had started to worry. He had finally decided to go to the local authorities, explaining to them about his missing friend. Because of her high profile they had immediately set to work organising their search efforts.
Larkin scowled as he walked up the cobbled street away from the police station, sweat collecting on his brow. He hated the heat in Brinatin. He hated the way the world was made up of an endless amount of islands. And he hated the way the local's demeanour was so incredibly positive. A woman smiled at him as she went by, humming happily to herself. He shook his head. It wasn't normal and he didn't like it.
Larkin entered the lobby of The Barlin View hotel and stopped in surprise. "You're back. Where are the others?" he asked as Anna and Rogan approached him.
"They've gone to see Eugene Fox," Anna said.
Larkin frowned, annoyed. "I would've gone with them. I'd like to see Eugene, I haven't seen him for years."
"Did you visit him in prison?" Anna asked curiously.
