The Brothers Locke, page 14
The triplets put their heads together, and their dismay and grief turned into determination. This was their strength. This was what they contributed: their bond. While Sharp was right that he alone couldn’t do anything to help the situation, the three of them together had proved over the last few days to be more capable than anyone had given them credit for. They would be there for him like he would be there for them. Somehow, someway, they would make things right.
***
Awolowo was still in shock at what had happened in the chambers of the High Council. He would have to deal with the aftermath for months to come, especially from the other members of the High Council, who by now had surely heard about the attack. Right now, he was more concerned with his own health. His breathing was labored, his forehead would not stop bleeding, and his hands continued to shake.
Bulk Brown did not care about any of this. He wanted answers. The Council of States had hired him and his crew for this task, and it had ended with dozens of lives lost and one of his own crew being abducted. There was clearly more going on here than he had been told from the beginning, and it was time for all the loose ends to be tied up.
“We’re going to have a little chat right now, brother,” Bulk told Awolowo.
The Councilman did not have the energy to protest. “Yes, yes, but away from other ears, Brother Bulk.”
Awolowo carefully walked to the smashed remains of his office, where all the investigators, paramedics, and police who were working on the crime scene were not allowed. Many of the stacks of books and papers Awolowo had in his office had been scattered around in the aftermath of the attack. The entire group crammed themselves in the office. Either out of habit or for the sake of comedy, Kale closed the door to the office despite the fact that the entire wall that door clung to had gaping holes in it.
“I won’t mince words with you young people anymore,” started Awolowo.
“Well that’s a nice change,” said Echo.
“You can start by telling us what’s really going on,” Bulk said.
“What I told you was most of the story. The goal was the same: to get the Key of the Spire, the coin, and the information on that data cube so we could get a handle on this whole thing. I don’t think you young brothers and sisters really understand how dangerous this is.”
“Well, why don’t you explain it to us?”
“Fair enough,” Awolowo had to take a seat.
His body was still aching and at his advanced age; he would not recover anytime soon. Bulk waited as the older man found a chair that had not been destroyed in the attack to sit on. Once he was comfortable, Awolowo brushed at his large afro as he started to speak.
“Avidity and Pharracrop aren’t the only parties interested in the mystery of The Spire. There are other forces — darker forces — in the East that we know for a fact are chasing this slice of history. Shallowhale has been very active in the last few months. Now, we don’t know exactly what’s going on there. All of the operatives we’ve had in the East have told us you can’t even get close to Shallowhale unless you wish to meet a rather gruesome and painful end. But what we do know is that in that dark, dank, and, until recently, quiet area of the East, someone has risen to power.”
“Who?” asked Bulk.
“He goes by the name of Degharc. You’ve heard of him, I’m sure, Brother Bulk, but the rest of your partners may not have.”
Bando spoke up, “I know of him. He’s a Dark Magic Acolyte. He was trained by the former Kings and Queens of Shallowhale. He’s grown very strong and influential in the last few years.”
“Well, I’d say he’s grown very ruthless and dangerous over the last few years,” Awolowo replied. “Not to mention the man is insane. The story is he’s been working on something big, gathering lots of forces under his banner, and one person in his service is Von Strauss. You may remember the name.”
“How could we forget?” Mouth said.
“So that’s who he’s working for,” Echo added.
“Yes, and now that Avidity knows how to get inside, I think that Shallowhale is going to grow very desperate.”
Kale exhaled deeply, “Well, this just got more complicated.”
“Why wouldn’t they just join forces?” asked Echo. “They’re all working for the East. It’d make more sense.”
Awolowo laughed, “My young brother, let me school you on how powerful men work. They don’t share. The Miscellany and Degharc may both be from the East, but they are totally different sides of the same coin. Avidity is all about power by controlling people and having them praise their masters for doing so. Shallowhale is an entirely different thing. They are more about the Dark Arts and the power that comes from hatred and violence. And trust, these old eyes have seen how destructive powerful, hateful, and violent souls can be in the Dea.”
“It may be helpful to us, though, if the two of them are fighting over the same thing,” Bulk Brown said.
“Well, you do have one advantage. The girl is our ace, so to speak.” Awolowo looked at the group and suddenly noticed that Dana was not with them. “Where is she, anyway?”
An unsettled look came across everyone’s face as they were reminded that their most fearless companion had been abducted.
“That thing took her,” Bulk informed Awolowo. “We didn’t know why until now. So is that why she was so agitated earlier when we were talking about all of this?”
Bando took a step forward so he could be in the middle of the group and crossed his arms. The seven-foot-tall giant had come across to the Locke Brothers as just a big brute, but clearly, he knew more than he had let on this entire time. By the look on Bulk Brown’s face, who had been friends with Bando for years, he was even surprised that Bando had his own revelation to confess.
“Dana and I worked on this project in Icagoro for a while. We gathered all the information on that data cube from the fanatics I told you about earlier. Awolowo had hired us a long time ago to get as much as we could. However, in doing so, I found out something, and I’m sure Dana knew it too.”
Bulk Brown asked, “Which is?”
“She is a Child of the Spire.”
The Locke Brothers were stunned, as were Kale, Jocelyn, and especially Bulk Brown. All this time they had worked with her, she had kept this secret from them, and so had Bando. While they all knew Dana was a bit different from most people, the thought that she was a Child of the Spire, and thus an actual person from a parallel dimension — The World, as they called it — made this entire conflict that much more personal.
“And now she’s with them,” signed Sharp.
“Maybe it was on purpose,” Bulk Brown theorized. “She may have just left with them. You said you were knocked out downstairs, Bando. Who’s to say that she didn’t plan all of this from the beginning, and this was her big escape?”
Sharp became angry and started throwing all sorts of signs towards Bulk Brown, some of which Bulk knew were curses, but he wasn’t threatened at all by the young boy. Echo and Mouth tried to calm him, but Sharp became so upset he walked out of the room in disgust.
“That’s a pretty big leap, Bulk,” Kale admitted.
“Yeah, Dana’s been working with us for a long time now. She’s part of the team, part of Solas,” added Jocelyn.
“Well, I’m just saying it wouldn’t surprise me. Everyone involved with this thing has secrets upon secrets. Look at these two,” he pointed to Bando and Awolowo. “The guy who hired us kept us in the dark about how dangerous this all was, which, by the way, means I want more money to compensate for all of my trouble. And you, Bando! We’ve been working together on and off longer than any of these kids have been alive. I’m surprised you’d keep something like that from me.”
“It wasn’t for me to tell her business, Bulk, any more than it would be if it were something you wanted to keep secret. It would have just complicated things.”
Awolowo interjected, “That’s not really the point now, brothers. Whether or not she was working for them all along is irrelevant. What is relevant is that they have her, in whatever capacity, and they need to be stopped before they reach The Spire. Now, there are only a few roads that lead in that direction, and once you get to the mountains; it’s entirely off the map. No trails we know of, no roads, just snow and ice. I’m asking a lot, especially with your leg, but it would take three days to organize anything here to go after them. Someone needs to go after them now.”
“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that. I’m on it. I want answers from her,” Bulk Brown said. “Bando and I will go. Kale and Jocelyn, you two stay here and make sure this man gets our money right.”
“What about us?” asked Mouth.
“You three have done enough. More than enough. You may get on my nerves, but you’re tough little brats. There’s nothing you can do up there. You heard what Awolowo said. It’s basically a frozen iceberg we’re going to, and I’ve been in that area before. So has Bando. We’ll be able to take care of this.” Bulk turned back to Awolowo, “Another two hundred thousand, is that a deal?”
Awolowo nodded. He really had no other choice. The High Council would have him in meetings for days trying to figure out what happened and why he had allowed such a disaster to start in the first place. The only bargaining chip he’d have with the rest of the High Council would be if the situation were resolved and both Shallowhale and Avidity had no access to The Spire. Solas was his only chance at that.
“I’m going to get some medicine for my leg, and I’ll meet you downstairs in ten minutes,” Bulk said to Bando. “And after this, Awolowo, we’re done. No more jobs for you. I’m going into early retirement.”
“Noted, my brother,” confirmed the Councilman.
“Wait, we can help,” Mouth protested. “Look, I know we’re just kids, but we want to come along. Sharp especially. You know he’s got feelings for Dana.”
“That’s exactly why you aren’t going,” Bando said. “He’d just complicate things. No, that’s too much of a risk. I’ll handle this. I have been the entire time.”
Echo raised an eyebrow at Bando’s objection, but there was nothing left to be said. Bulk Brown and Bando left the Councilman’s office. The decision had been made. No matter how much the Locke Brothers wanted to help, they had been overruled. It wasn’t as if Bando hadn’t made a good point. Sharp’s feelings for Dana could certainly be a problem. This wasn’t a robbery, this wasn’t a game. They were going into a battle that would likely see no survivors.
Awolowo arranged for Jocelyn, Kale, and the Locke Brothers to have rooms in a nearby hotel where they could grab a meal and a shower, something all of them had longed for. Once the situation had resolved itself, they would be allowed to go wherever they wanted and have the protection (or what protection Awolowo could provide them at this point) of the High Council, meaning that no one would come after any of them for the list of crimes they had committed. Espionage, theft, vandalism, illegally crossing the border from the East to the West, and about two dozen other violations could easily be racked up against all of them. This was their Get Out Of Jail Free pass.
***
“Wow, hot water. Hot water! I have never been so happy to take a shower in my entire life!”
Mouth’s over-excitement about being able to take a shower permeated every wall in the hotel suite that the Locke Brothers had been provided. Sharp and Echo were trying their best to ignore him, but his whoops and sighs were getting louder with every minute.
“I’m going to stay in here until I’m wrinkled like a prune!”
Echo and Sharp were annoyed at first, but Echo eventually cracked a smile. He knew what Mouth was trying to do. They were all disappointed that they wouldn’t be able to help, Sharp more so than his brothers. The lovesick thirteen-year-old sat at the end of one of the beds and just stared at the beige carpet, lost in his own thoughts.
“Man, that was so needed!” Mouth came out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel with the largest smile he had worn in a week. “I’m going to sleep for two days.”
“I’m glad you went last because if we had to wait for you to finish, there probably wouldn’t be any hot water left,” Echo said.
“Nonsense. This is Pharracrop. They have everything. So posh. So clean. So modern.”
Mouth picked up a strange sculpture from the table in a small sitting area next to the bathroom door. The piece of art, a study in geometric shapes from the looks of it, didn’t impress him too much but confirmed the poshness of their surroundings.
“It’s going to be hard to get back out on the road after this,” Mouth commented as he flopped onto one of the beds.
“Well, let’s make sure we get our money first. If we have to leave, we might as well get paid,” said Echo.
“Is money all you think about?” Sharp signed violently.
“You know it’s not, Sharp. Look, I know you’re upset about Dana, but what can we do? Bulk and Bando are gone. It’s in their hands now.”
Mouth added, “Not to be mean or anything, but let’s face the facts, brother. She’s way too old for you. There wasn’t going to be any relationship. I know she’s your first crush and all, but you have to be honest with yourself about this.”
“I didn’t think there was going to be a relationship, Mouth,” Sharp signed. “It doesn’t mean I don’t care about her. I know what the deal is.”
“Well, regardless, we can’t do anything about it. Let’s get some rest and go on our way. Hopefully Bando and Bulk can get her back from that monster, and all this business with The Spire will be over with.”
Sharp was staring up at the corner of the room. At first, he was just looking for anything in the room to focus on besides his brother’s faces. They were telling him the truth, and as much as he knew they were right, it still didn’t mean he wanted to hear it. It was then that something shook his memory, and his face lit up with a sudden realization.
“We’re going back to The Paramount,” he signed.
“We’re what?” asked Mouth.
“Sharp, give it up, brother. We —” Echo protested.
“Just do this for me, okay?”
Echo and Mouth looked at each other and nodded. If this would make their brother get over this faster, they’d do it. Mouth went into the other room to get dressed while Sharp went to the door of their hotel room.
“Sharp! Where are you going?” asked Echo.
“To get Kale and Jocelyn. We’ll need them.”
“Okay, what is going on with you? What is this all of a sudden?”
Sharp paused and looked up in the corner of the hotel room again, “I need to know what she did.”
“You do realize what you’re asking us for comes with serious consequences. You want us to break into Pharracrop security? Not only Pharracrop security but that of the High Council. You’re out of your ever-lovin mind!” was Kale’s immediate response to Sharp’s request.
“Perhaps you should tell us what this is all about,” Jocelyn said.
“Yeah, because right now I’m doing this thing where I cross my arms, and they’re not coming uncrossed until I hear something that doesn’t end up with my life being in danger again.”
Mouth and Echo were there with Sharp as he tried to explain to Jocelyn and Kale the revelation he just had. There was no time like the present to let them in on it.
“Remember how Bando said that the courier had destroyed all the cameras?” Sharp signed.
“Yes, we remember,” said Mouth.
“I was upset when we found that Dana was taken. I was just staring up at the ceiling. I just remembered when we were sitting in our room that I did see a camera there, in The Paramount lobby, still working.”
“So you think we can see what really happened with Dana if we see that footage?” Mouth said.
“That’s a stretch,” Kale said.
“It doesn’t matter,” Mouth added. “The camera is working. We can go have a look at the footage. We’ll just ask Awolowo. He would certainly have access to it. Then we can see what’s really going on.”
“We can see if she went with them willingly or if they took her,” signed Sharp. “I just want to know. I have to know.”
Jocelyn and Kale took a moment to absorb the information. Although reluctant, they knew that if there was any evidence that Dana wasn’t a traitor, they’d have to go after it. And right now, they were the only ones who could.
“I’ll go get my stuff,” Kale grunted. “But I’m telling you, there’s no way I’m getting in trouble for this. I’m not agreeing to break into anything, I’m just going along.”
“Yes, yes,” Mouth smiled.
“Thank you,” Sharp signed.
Getting back to The Paramount was going to be more difficult than they had realized. The place was flooded with security, media, paramedics, investigators, and onlookers all trying to get a sense of what had happened hours ago. It was a circus. Five teenagers would not be able to muscle their way through this amount of people, and even if they did, there was no guarantee the security guards would let them back in.
Fortunately, Kale spotted their original guide here in Pharracrop, Ikon. He was a bit worse for wear himself. His right arm was in a sling, and he had several cuts on the right side of his face. Clearly, he had tangled with the monster, Mongrel, as well.
“What are you all doing back here?” Ikon asked, his high society accent as pronounced as ever. “You were to remain in the hotel until this was all sorted out.”
“We have some information that we think Awolowo might need to see,” Kale said.
“Now is not the time, believe me. The Councilman has his hands quite full.”
“I can imagine, but we need his help.”
“Sorry, maybe if you come back later—”
Mouth spoke up, “Buddy, to be honest, you guys owe us. We didn’t want anything to do with this, but now we’re stuck with it. Can you just do us this one favor, this one thing, please!”
