Thaumatology 12: Vengeance (31 page)

Ophelia walked into the lounge and Ceri turned to look at her. The Sidhe had been spending a lot of time in the Demon Realm and it was rare to see her in the house. Now she was there, and she was frowning.

‘Is that the BBC?’ Ophelia asked, waving a hand at the TV.

‘Uh-huh,’ Lily replied. ‘I like their presenters.’

‘Well there should be something coming up…’

The picture cut back to the studio where a fairly young, slightly nervous-looking man was flicking his eyes over a sheet of paper he had obviously just been handed. ‘We’re going over now to our Otherworld correspondent for a report from the Fae Consulate,’ he stated before the picture cut again.

A tall, inhumanely handsome man with shoulder-length, inky-black hair was standing behind a lectern in a fairly small press briefing room. The consulate was little more than a house owned by the Seelie Ambassador. It was somewhere in Mayfair, Ceri thought, so it was an expensive house, but it was still just a house.

‘Ambassador Irwan Alberich gave the following statement ten minutes ago,’ the presenter stated in voiceover.

And the man spoke, his voice rich and a little dark, as one would expect of a powerful Sidhe. ‘I have received the following statement from the Summer Court. I will read it as it has been presented to me. I will not be taking questions.’

‘He’s House Alberich?’ Ceri asked.

Ophelia nodded. ‘Distant cousin of Oberon. He’s competent, but not very imaginative.’

‘King Oberon and Queen Titania,’ Irwan said, reading from what looked like an actual scroll, ‘wish it to be known that the human woman, Ceridwyn Brent, is well known and well regarded by the Summer Court, her power, knowledge, and self-sacrifice brought victory in the face of sure defeat when dark forces sought to usurp the Twin Thrones. She is considered a friend of the Fae.’ He paused for a second and then added, ‘That is all,’ before turning and walking out through the door behind him.

The room erupted into uproar as people shouted questions and the picture cut back to the studio, but Lily was already muting the sound.

‘Well…’ Lily said, ‘that’s good, isn’t it?’

‘Not exactly,’ Ceri replied, looking at Ophelia for confirmation.

The Sidhe’s pretty face did not suit a grimace. ‘They basically just said that if something happens to Ceri, they’ll consider it as an act of aggression against the Fae. Not only that, but they’re saying that the Fae should act to protect Ceri.’

‘They have to know what that would mean,’ Ceri said warily.

‘Oh yeah, they do. You made an impression. You saved their royal behinds. You basically went to war for them, and they’re willing to do the same for you.’

‘Oh,’ Lily said. ‘Well… crap.’

‘Yeah,’ Ceri agreed. ‘That’s going to go down so well. The Foreign Office is going to be running around like scalded cats.’

‘Hiffy has your rooms prepared for an extended stay if necessary,’ Ophelia stated. ‘She’s working on the guest rooms in case you want to bring anyone else over. If we need to, we can evacuate and leave them to stew.’

‘That,’ Ceri said, ‘is the absolute
last
resort.’

‘Maybe, but you need to consider it.’

Biting her lips, Ceri walked past Ophelia, across the landing, and into the study. That was where Gwyn and Mei were, the latter speaking quietly into a mobile phone when Ceri walked in.

‘Gwyn, I need you to get a message to Ed,’ Ceri said.

‘Edward has had a visit from some policemen this morning,’ Gwyn replied, her voice level. ‘They told him they were making enquiries into his background and that he should not leave town.’

Ceri’s fists clenched. ‘Policemen?’

‘That’s what they claimed to be. He was not so sure.’

‘Right… If it comes to it, he’s to come here. Directly. No pretence about needing a train. Hiffy and Ruffa have prepared rooms at the castle. Who’s Mei talking to?’

‘The Foreign Office. They called her. Apparently they are in something of a state of anxiety regarding a statement made by the Fae Ambassador.’

‘Yeah, I’m a little anxious about that myself.’

‘You need to diffuse this situation, Ceridwyn,’ Gwyn stated.

‘Me?!’

‘You are the only one who can, dear. Thanks to Huanglong and Jehoel, and the BBC, everyone is aware that you are a sorceress.’

Ceri glowered, though not at Gwyn. Jehoel’s words had, apparently, not been kept for Ceri alone. Everyone within a hundred yards had heard him call her a sorceress. A lot of people had seen her pushing aside fire bolts and throwing around huge amounts of magical energy. Those who had heard the words had believed them and gone on camera reporting them. There had been others who had gone on record to say that an angel had come down to Earth to save the life of Ceri’s companion. When Lily had been identified as a half-demon, the implications of
that
had been debated on more than a few chat shows and talking-heads programmes. What Ceri had feared, the revelation of her secret, had come to pass, and so far it was not going too well.

‘The only person who can calm things down now is you,’ Gwyn went on. ‘I know it’s a lot to ask, but we’re all counting on you again.’

Ceri nodded and turned away. Carter had said something similar the day before. He had managed to get past the press with Cheryl and Alec, primarily to check on Lily and tell her in no uncertain terms that she was to take a few days off work. He had also come to tell Ceri that the Order of Merlin had got very active suddenly. He had not been able to determine exactly what they were up to, but they were on the move.

‘Ceri,’ Twill said, flitting up over the banister, ‘there’s a werewolf on the grounds. Michael, I think.’

‘If it is, he’s got a key,’ she replied, and sure enough his voice came up from the main kitchen a second later.

‘Ceri? Where are you?’ The young man sounded anxious, and that was not good.

‘In the lounge, love,’ Ceri called back, trying to sound calm. She crossed the landing again as he ran up the stairs.

‘Alexandra’s in Catherine’s shop,’ Michael said as soon as he had joined them. ‘She’s got Anita with her and Stefan’s there. She sent me to tell you what’s going on.’

‘And?’ Ceri asked.

‘Catherine started getting calls this morning. We had Dolf and Donal over just after dawn. The packs, and I mean
all
of the packs, are up in arms. Most of them didn’t know what you were, but they don’t give a shit in a bush. What you
are
is Luperca’s favourite human and they’re not going to stand by and let you get hurt.’

Ceri slumped onto the couch beside Lily, her face in her hands. ‘Alexandra and Catherine are trying to calm them down?’

‘Alexandra’s doing that. Catherine’s helping and trying to keep a lid on things with the Home Office, but she says they’re acting weird. It’s a bit like when Raynor was around. They’re being unnecessarily confrontational.’

‘Politicians backed into a corner aren’t that different from rats. This could end up with a full-on war between the supernatural community and the normals.’

‘I am afraid that your assessment is accurate, Ceridwyn,’ Mei said from the doorway. Gwyn was behind her. ‘My colleagues have told me that there are several rumours to the effect that you are either a Demon Lord, or some form of envoy from the Demon Realm. It seems whoever is leaking the information is not giving your actual role away, just enough to make it sound very bad. The Home Office has taken control of the situation, sidelining the Ministry for Arcane Affairs and directing the Foreign Office to only talk to the Fae Ambassador regarding the matter.’

Ceri looked up. ‘Are they allowed to do that?’

‘They are allowed to make the request. They are painting the situation as a matter of national security, which means that everyone else is supposed to listen.’

‘Okay… what if…?’

‘A normal male and a witch just came through the gate,’ Twill announced.

Ceri sagged again. ‘Now we’ve got the Greycoats visiting.’

‘I’ll get the door,’ Ophelia offered.

‘This is starting to move too fast,’ Ceri muttered.

Both Kate and John were looking serious. John looked serious a lot when he was working, but when Kate was doing it it meant that the shit had hit the fan so hard the blades had broken off.

‘We were sent over to make sure you were still here,’ John said, his tone distinctly sour. ‘The Home Office is sending a car to take you to a meeting at Marsham Street.’

‘Our office is going nuts,’ Kate added. ‘The Chief’s been in meetings all day explaining how he had not known that you were anything other than a normal magician with a lot of technical knowledge.’

‘Damn,’ Ceri growled.

‘Oh, he’s fucking annoyed,’ John said. ‘He says it’s like Raynor all over again. Someone’s influencing the higher-ups at the Met, but he thinks it’s purely political. Someone’s pulled in a lot of favours to make things tough for people who know you. We both got grilled.’

‘I’m so sorry…’

‘Fuck off,’ John grumbled. ‘I’m not. I don’t like people threatening my friends. I’m quite prepared to say we found this place empty when we arrived.’ Kate was nodding in agreement.

‘No,’ Ceri said, getting to her feet. ‘No, this needs to calm down. We’ve got Otherworld and the werewolves ready to go to war for me. You’re ready to lie for me. This needs to calm down… And there’s the future to think of. I’m not the only sorcerer in the world. I
know
there’s one in America, there must be more. If I can’t get this under control, things will go badly for them. I’ll go to the Home Office and we’ll see what happens from there.’ Gwyn was smiling at her, which was a good sign.

‘A bit of preparatory work wouldn’t go amiss though,’ Ceri added. ‘Mei, call your contacts at the Foreign Office. Tell them that the Overlord of All Demons, Lady Ayasha, would like one of their representatives to contact her Ambassador to Earth with regards to opening diplomatic relations.’

Mei gave a nod, apparently unsurprised. ‘Who shall I say is your Ambassador?’

‘Lily, you are now the Demon Realm’s Ambassador to Earth.’ Lily let out a squeak, her eyes widening. ‘Where’s your father?’

‘He’s on the other side,’ Ophelia supplied. ‘He’s been helping Hiffy organise things.’

‘Right. Get him back here to help Lily. And you’ll be Lilith for diplomatic purposes. Okay, love?’

‘I… uh… I guess I can do it.’

‘They will take some time to organise themselves,’ Mei said. ‘You will have some time to prepare. Making the approach early will put down a marker, however.’

Ceri gave a nod. ‘Ishifa?’

The fairy appeared in the air beside Twill. She had been nervous for the last couple of days as if suspecting that her new life was going to have to change again. ‘Yes, Ceri?’

‘I need you to go out and take a message to Cheryl. Tell her that we may have to leave for the Demon Realm. If she wants to, she can come over. Carter and Alec as well, if they want. If they do, I’ll come get them before we leave. Make sure she’s clear I’m hoping it won’t come to that, but I need her to think about it.’

The tiny woman swallowed hard. ‘Yes, Ceri.’

‘Then I need you to go to Demi-monde. It’s a club on Curzon Street. Twill can tell you where that is. You’re to pick up a package that’s there for me and bring it back here. Talk to Mistress Arabella, and only her.’

‘Yes, Ceri.’ Looking even more nervous, Ishifa flew off toward the attic. She wanted to be wearing something if she was going out on an errand in the city.

‘There are men coming up the path,’ Twill said into the silence. ‘One of them is a practitioner and I don’t like the feel of him.’

‘Carter said the Order of Merlin was getting active,’ Lily said, her voice tense.

‘Uh-huh,’ Ceri replied. ‘I’m going out to meet them. I’m not having a pacted wizard in my house.’

Westminster.

Four men escorted Ceri down a corridor in the Home Office’s headquarters, a building she had always disliked and now really hated. Three of her guards were boring, ordinary security personnel. She guessed at Special Branch, though they had not identified themselves. The fourth, and the only one who had done any talking, might have been from the same arm of the police, but he was less boring even though he dressed in the same style of dark suit and wore sunglasses as they did. Ceri’s Sight showed the black canker of demonic pact corruption wrapped around his chakral median. His confident smile had slipped a little at the look of disgust on her face when she had seen him outside High Towers, but it was back now.

They had spirited her away in a black car with a police escort, clearing the press back before they arrived. No one was to see her leaving, which was not a good sign. Now she was being taken via service elevators and back corridors to a meeting with… Well, he had not explained who she was meeting, which was also a less than favourable sign. Ceri was pushing down nerves as she walked, but then she saw something which made her more interested than worried.

Ahead of them was a door, but in front of the door was a shimmering barrier. Ceri had seen something very like it before, at Black Fields in America. It was caused by very fast Null Thaumitons passing from a zero-magic zone into normal space. The room they were going into had, somehow, been reduced to a zero-magic field. Black Fields had been the only time she had ever seen such an area. So how had they managed to get one at the top of the Home Office building?