Witch's Fury, page 11
It didn’t make sense to fight for something that was so elusive, like confined Chenilles. He needed to keep it simple. What would the Chenilles do once he had all the Triad? When that happened, they’d be on their own, anyway, without a leader to protect them, feed them. In time, the electric dome that protected them would collapse, and they would free themselves, knocking through the gates of the cemetery and running through the city, looking for marrow to eat. They would be his for the taking.
He couldn’t have been happier. His plan to capture Vivienne had gone better than he’d hoped. It had been so easy to mimic Evee’s voice because she sounded, to his ear, like a little child calling, “Viv, I need your help. Please, I need your help!” And just as he’d suspected, Vivienne had taken off without a second thought to help her sister, and that’s when he had one of his minions capture her.
The Benders were proving to be as useless as the sorcerer they’d added to their troupe. Yes, he had lost some of his Cartesians due to their stupid little toy wands. He was more than a little surprised during the last encounter he’d had with the Benders that one of the Triad had used a wand as effectively as any of the Benders since they’d arrived in the city.
But the toy didn’t belong to her. Yet he still had to count on there being four, not three left to attack his army. But he didn’t fear four any more than he did three. They could only push the Cartesians back into other dimensions for so long. If he allowed rift upon rift upon rift to open up into the sky, his Cartesians would annihilate anything and everything in their path. Which was not something he was ready to do just yet. He wanted to make his plan work. He had much left to do.
First, he needed the remaining Triad members, and not by a happenstance death either. He wanted them all fearful, he wanted them together, he wanted them as one, joining together, so that he would have their ultimate power. Even when the Triad members were children, their combined power was greater than any one witch, even the oldest in the Circle of Sisters. He knew this because he’d been there, watching, always watching them. That’s the kind of power he wanted flowing through him.
The Originals that the Triad ancestors had created had many powers of their own, but that Triad would give him charge over the universe. Every element they were linked to, he’d possess: fire, water, earth... And with that power he’d be able to control air on his own and so many things on this earth that humans would fear him. They’d bow down to him.
With that kind of power, he could eliminate human interference. The president of the United States. The Vice President. Even in this small city, he’d take on the mayor, the city council, whatever it took to get them out of the way. In order to get down to the common man so there’d be no power left greater than his. No laws to fear but his own. No one left to bow to but him. Oh, how they’d fear his superiority.
That’s what he was after. First this place, and then the world, and all on it would bow at his feet. Eventually, his army of Cartesians would be so large, he’d be able to manipulate the very universe itself. The placement of the stars and planets. The shadowing of the moon and sun. And he could make it all happen with nothing but a thought. All he needed was that supreme power. Oh, and he’d get it. Yes, indeed, he’d get it.
In the meantime, as his plan began to unfold, he allowed his Cartesians to pick from the netherworld. A fae here, a leprechaun there, a vampire, a werewolf, anything with an ounce of supernatural power. He allowed them to take those, for they were nothing but baubles attached to a string of invaluable pearls. Baubles, yes, but each bauble added a dash of power here, a pinch there—small, but there nonetheless. They still added to his greatness, and he needed all of the strength he could get.
For, to master the universe, one needed to be the most powerful being alive. One needed to be a god.
Chapter 11
“We’re going to have to figure out a way to split up,” Gilly said. “I know we only have the Camaro, but I want to go and check the north compound. If Nikoli knows anything about Viv, that’s where he’ll be looking for her. One man covering five-hundred acres is a lot. If that’s where he is, he’s definitely going to need some help.”
“We should know soon,” Gavril said. “Nikoli should be here any moment. He’s been summoned, which means, unless he’s in dire straits, that he must show up.”
“How long do we wait?” Gilly asked.
“If he’s at the north compound as you think, I’d give him twenty minutes to a half hour to get here,” Gavril said.
“That’s a long time,” Gilly said.
“Well, it’s not like he can fly here,” Evee said. “Give the man a break.”
“Fine. Good. We’ll give the man a break,” Gilly said a hint of sarcasm in her voice. “Sorry, didn’t mean to come across like a bitch. I just hate being trapped in here. Hate that the Cartesians know where we live. Our Originals have become secondary now. Viv is our priority, and above all else, we have to find her. And here we are stuck like geese in an oven.”
“Would you mind going over to St. Louis I Cemetery with Lucien and check on my Chenilles, while I go to the compound and hunt for Viv? Make sure Nikoli’s okay, too,” Gilly asked Evee. “I know they’re my responsibility, but I don’t want to put you out in the open at the compound. You and Lucien can take the Camaro and check the cemetery. At least the car will offer some type of protection.”
“Sure,” Evee said. “But how are you and Gavril going to get to the compound? You can’t do it on foot. That’ll leave both of you too exposed.”
“Hell, we could be too exposed by simply walking out the door,” Gilly said. “But we’ve got to do something. I’m going stir crazy here. I can’t just sit in here and do nothing.”
“I agree,” Evee said.
“We’ll wait here for Nikoli,” Gavril said. “Then wait for you to get back with the Camaro. Once you return it, we’ll take the car to the dock and put it on the ferry. That should minimize our exposure. We’ll figure out the rest once we’ve made it to the compound.”
“There’s nothing to figure out,” Gilly said. “It’s easy. Viv keeps an old blue pickup truck hidden in a grove of oak trees and willows. It’s almost impossible to see unless you know where to look for it. If Nikoli or Viv haven’t taken it, we can use the truck to get to the compound. Viv always kept a spare truck key under the driver’s side visor.”
“I guess that’s the part we’ll have to figure out,” Gavril said. “Whether the truck’s there or not.”
“I’m hoping it is, then hoping it’s not,” Gilly said. “The truck, I mean. If it’s not there, then that means Viv’s taken it, which means she’s got to be somewhere on the compound. Oh, and remember, Viv’s got ranch hands out on the southern end of the compound. They take care of the cattle that go through the feeding shoot, so make sure when we go out there, we don’t get them involved in any way. We stay in the north compound. That’s five-hundred acres. A lot of land to look for Viv. The other part of it is if the truck is there, Viv either decided to investigate the compound on foot, or...she’s not there.”
“Maybe Nikoli will have some good news for us,” Gavril said. “We can only keep our fingers crossed.”
“It all sounds like a decent plan,” Lucien said. “If it works out in that order. You know how often we’ve been surprised by the Cartesians, so watch your back when you’re at the compound, cuz.”
“Always,” Gavril said with a short nod.
Lucien turned to Evee. “I’ll get the Camaro and pull it up to the front door. Evee, you keep an eye out for me at the side windows by the door. When you see me pull up, unless I signal you otherwise, just come running out and jump into the car. I’ll have the passenger door open and waiting for you. We’ll hurry over to the cemetery, check on the Chenilles, then get back here, so Gavril and Gilly can use the car to get to the ferry.”
“I’m with you,” Evee said.
When Evee and Lucien took off for the cemetery, Gilly went to the fridge and made a couple of ham sandwiches. She handed one to Gavril. “It’s not much, but I have no idea when we’ll get another chance to eat.”
“Thanks,” he said, and then he wolfed down the sandwich in four bites.
“Want another?”
“If you don’t mind,” Gavril said. “I don’t mean to sound like a pig, but I didn’t have breakfast or lunch today. Didn’t realize how hungry I was until I all but swallowed that ham sandwich whole.”
“No problem,” Gilly said.
She was in the middle of making Gavril two more sandwiches, when she heard a knock on the front door.
Gilly and Gavril exchanged glances, and then Gilly went to the front door with him in tow. She looked through the security peephole and was surprised to see Trey Cottle and Shandor Black standing on the other side of the door.
“What the hell do they want?”
“Who is it?” Gavril asked.
“Cottle and Black. The other two sorcerers who live in New Orleans. They own a law firm off of Canal. I don’t trust either of them, though. Neither do my sisters or the Elders.”
“Then don’t let them in.”
Gilly chewed on a fingernail for a few seconds. “I have to. I don’t know how, but they might have news about the Originals.”
Having said that, Gilly yanked the door open. “May I help you?” she asked, her voice hard and not the least bit welcoming.
Trey smiled, and Shandor nodded his head like a manipulated marionette.
“Come in,” Gilly said, not out of kindness but because she didn’t want to leave the door open and take the chance that a Cartesian might see her and attack.
Trey and Shandor walked into the house. Gilly left them standing in the foyer, not offering them a seat in the kitchen or sitting room.
“How may I help you gentlemen?” she asked.
“We’re looking for Gunner,” Trey said. “Word has it that he was over here helping you with a spell or something. We thought we might be able to help.”
“What word?” Gilly asked. “Who told you he was here?”
“Oh, just word,” Trey said. “We were supposed to meet with him for a game of poker, then dinner, but he never showed. We went over to his apartment, and he wasn’t there.”
“So what? Some homeless guy off the street sent you this way?”
Trey laughed, a phlegm-filled, gurgling sound. “Of course not. If I’m not mistaken, it may have been one of his neighbors or someone in the Quarter. I can’t recall at the moment.”
“Yeah, right,” Gilly said.
“As I said,” Trey said, looking a bit hurt and forlorn, all of it an act, that Gilly knew for sure,
“We’ve come all this way to offer our help. I’m not completely sure what the problem is, but you have our help if needed.”
“There is nothing that we need from you, Trey or Shandor,” Gilly said.
“So Gunner was here?” Trey said.
“What if he was? What business is that of yours?”
“I was only asking. You know, with everything that’s been going on in the city. I don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but there was a group of people in a bar down on Bourbon. Some of the Originals got to them. The Loup-Garous killed ten to twelve people. The police are all over the place. I thought if Gunner was out here trying to give you a hand, you might need some backup. It’s ugly out there now, but it’s going to get a hell of a lot worse. If that many people were killed right on Bourbon, can you imagine how many more might be killed in the surrounding suburbs, where there’s not so much action and noise?”
“What a minute. What’s this about the cops? How would they tie us to the Originals?” Gilly asked. “We’ve never let it out to the public that we were Triad, nor that we were responsible for the Originals, nor that the Originals even existed. We’ve kept that very hush-hush for generations.”
“Oh, well,” Trey said, shrugging his shoulders slightly, “word does get around.”
“Hold on,” Gilly said, fury boiling in her veins. “Did you tell them we took care of the Originals?”
Trey sighed. “Well, you know, when the police asked me, I couldn’t exactly lie. That would have implicated me in the situation.”
“Why, you son of a bitch! You put me in danger, along with my sisters and the Elders. We have enough problems to deal with. And now we have to worry about the police coming and banging on our door, asking about the humans that were taken by the Nosferatu or the Loup-Garous, or whichever one of the Originals killed those people? We don’t even know where the Originals are. What kind of sick asshole are you?”
“We could tell you,” Shandor said. “We can tell you. We could tell you because we saw them at the bar. We saw the carnage at the bar. There was blood everywhere. They ripped those people up. The bodies were ripped to shreds. It was really bad, wasn’t it, Trey?”
“Shut up,” Trey said to Shandor, “until you can talk like you’ve got some sense.”
“Do you mind if we have a seat?” Trey asked Gilly.
“Yes, I do mind,” Gilly said. She had to work hard to stay focused, her mind wandering and heart hurting over the humans who’d been killed. “I’d prefer that you not be here at all. If your mouth is big enough to tell the police that we’re caretakers for the Originals, especially the ones who murdered those people in the bar, I don’t want to have anything to do with you. I’ve always known you were not to be trusted. And Shandor, my feelings for you are exactly the same. You keep your nose stuck so far up Trey’s ass, I don’t know how you breathe.”
Shandor looked down at the floor, his pale cheeks turning dark pink.
Trey balled his hands into fists and held them at his side.
It was then that Gavril appeared alongside Gilly. “Gentlemen, the lady’s asked you to leave. She’s been quite clear that she doesn’t need or want your help. I would take her advice and leave immediately.”
“What do you have to do with any of this?” Trey asked. “You’re not a sorcerer or a witch. This is between us and the people who live in this city. I’m concerned about them. I don’t know what Gunner did to try to help, but evidently it didn’t work, which makes sense because Gunner, in and of himself, is relatively useless. He’s too weak.”
“And you think you can make things better?” Gavril said with a sneer. “From the looks of things, the only thing you make better is trouble. You and Shandor think you can simply walk in here and make the whole ugliness of this disappear.”
“Oh, I know I can,” Trey said. “I’m quite confident of it.”
“Well, I don’t care what you’re confident in,” Gilly said. “I don’t want anything to do with you. The farther you are away from us, the better. I don’t want you at this house ever again.”
“I’ll be glad to come and be a spokesperson for Trey if you’d like,” Shandor said.
“I said shut up, Shandor,” Trey demanded. “I’m the one with the power here. If you need to call the Originals back, then you need me. If you need to find your sister, you need me. Shandor alone, much less Gunner, is useless.”
Gilly held up a hand and felt her heart start beating triple time. “Wait a damn minute. How did you know one of my sisters was missing?”
Trey lifted a brow. “Word gets around, little girl. I told you that once before. There’s not much that gets by me. Ever. I always keep my ear to the ground. There’s a lot that goes on in this city, and it’s my responsibility to stay on top of it. I have to know what’s going on at all times so that we’re always protected.”
Gilly glared at him. “Since you know one of my sisters is missing, do you know where she is?”
Trey shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“What are you talking about? What’s with this maybe, maybe not bull. You either do or you don’t.”
Gavril suddenly grabbed Trey by the lapels of his jacket. “You need to listen up, little man. If you know where Vivienne François is and don’t tell us right this minute, I’ll send you flying across the lawn so fast, you won’t know what hit you. I’ll make sure your head hits concrete so it splatters like a water balloon.”
“If you’re smart, you’ll take your hands off of me,” Trey said to Gavril. “You forget. I’m a sorcerer. You’re just a commoner.” And with that, Trey waved a hand, and Gavril’s hands suddenly released Trey’s lapel, and his arms fell limp at his side.
Gavril looked over at Gilly, dumbstruck.
“You think you’ve come over here to save the day,” Trey said to Gavril, “but all you’ve done is stir up more trouble.”
“That’s right,” Shandor said. “That’s right. More trouble. All trouble. Look at all the humans that are dead and all of the Originals that are missing. You caused the trouble. You are the trouble.”
“Shut up, Shandor,” Trey said, his voice harsh. “You’re just talking to hear yourself talk.”
Shandor lowered his head.
Trey gave Gilly a stern look. “Now you either want my help or you don’t.”
Gilly stepped closer to Trey, until she was almost nose to nose with him. “I asked you a question. I don’t want an ambiguous answer. Do you know where my sister is?”
“And my answer, once again, is the same. Maybe, maybe not,” Trey said.
“I don’t understand what you mean by that,” Gilly said.
“If I issue a spell to find her, we will find her,” Trey said. “But you have to be willing to accept my help.”
“Mine, too,” Shandor said. “Because I’m with Trey, so mine, too. I can do spells, too. I can do a lot of spells.”
