Gabriel’s mumbling and talking in whispers. I stretch my hand across the bed and find it empty. When I open my eyes, a small sliver of light is sneaking in through the door. Gabriel is standing in the hallway quietly talking to someone. Grayson. Obviously. They wander down the hall and curiosity gets the better of me. I’m on my feet and following them. I come to the room where the Nomads were watching television earlier in the evening. Now the room is crammed with people, but no one says a word. I weave between the silent men until I see what has them all stunned into silence.
It’s the news, but they’re not reporting on the newest addition of the royal family. They’re reporting on me. Well, my fire at least. Video footage of the mansion and the vibrant red blaze is being intercut with footage of the red lightning striking me. It’s been filmed at a distance but the image is clear. You can’t see my face. But it’s obvious it’s a girl and that the events are far from human.
‘Oh my god…’ My involuntary gasp has everyone turning to face me. Gabriel leaves the television and heads towards me.
‘I don’t want you to panic,’ he says, like that will help me to remain calm. ‘It’s going to be okay.’
‘I’m on the news! I can’t believe it. This is terrible. W-what do we do?’
‘Boss?’ Billy enters the room with an armful of newspapers. ‘We have another problem. A big problem.’
As he passes, I take the top one in my hand and see an enormous picture of the red flames rising from The Orchard with the words, “Witches are back!” sprawled across it. Another paper shows the lightning hitting me and streaming out to the mass of Traitors below. It’s a silhouette at best. The words read, “Witch kills dozens of humans in terror attack!” It’s crystal clear that what is on these pages is magical in nature. And it’s out for the world to see. ‘This is a lie. There were no humans. They were Traitors and they were trying to kill us!’
‘It doesn’t matter.’ Grayson shrugs, taking the paper from my hands and looking at it for himself. ‘They are announcing to the world that we are back and that we are a threat to every person on the planet.’
‘I’m sorry, Boss,’ Billy clears his throat and holds out his full arms. ‘That’s not the problem I was talking about.’
‘What is?’ Grayson reaches over and takes another paper. He goes a ghostly white as he stares at the front page, then slowly, he turns it to us. I’m looking at three enormous photographs that fill the entire front page. Photographs of Collins, Grayson and Gabriel. Across the bottom are the words “Witches are here. And these are their faces”.
‘They must have tracked you down through ownership of the house. Business records. Bank accounts,’ Billy says. At that moment, their faces appear on the television. Along with their full names, the businesses that they are associated with, and every known address they have. ‘Your faces are everywhere.’
‘And hers?’ Gabriel asks.
‘Not as of yet, sir,’ Billy replies.
My voice is a weak whisper. ‘This is bad. Really bad.’
‘Yes. It is. We must get a move on.’ Grayson folds up the paper and tosses it to the floor. ‘The news broke a couple of hours ago. Most of England hasn’t woken up yet so we need to get to this little oddity museum in Cornwall as soon as possible. Before everyone in England knows our faces and they get organised.’
‘Who gets organised?’
‘Hunters. Police. Civilians. You name it. Doesn’t matter really. They all want us dead and buried. We need to get to the oddity museum before it becomes a target. Get everything packed and ready to go.’
‘A target?’ I ask, as the Nomads start to scatter and prepare.
‘The phrase, witch-hunt, is really very accurate,’ Grayson sighs, pinching the ridge of his nose and shaking away the exhaustion he is clearly feeling. I doubt he’s got any sleep. ‘When the country wakes up to these headlines, they’re going to be looking for us. Or anyone they think may be like us. And to do that they’ll head to places they think we may be. A strange little house which is showcasing occult items will be on their list. Trust me. We need to get to it before the men with torches do.’
‘People aren’t like that anymore. They might think this is all a hoax.’ I hear the denial in my voice and want to slap myself for it. Grayson’s eye-roll will just have to do instead.
Billy’s phone rings. After a few seconds of conversation, he informs the rest of us solemnly, ‘The Hunters are already gathering, sir.’
The whole room stills and you can feel the dread build in the air. I swallow a lump and Gabriel slides his hand into mine.
‘What’s your intel?’ Gabriel demands.
‘Our intel is that the French, Russian and some of the US Hunter Sanctums are preparing their men to leave for England in a matter of hours.’
‘Since the sighting of magic was here, they’ll be flocking in from all over the world with the intention of crushing not only us, but the idea that we could even return. What of the UK?’
The television stars emanating a high-pitched tone. We all turn to watch as the screen turns blue. The image of a stake surrounded by flames is embossed in the background. The tone stops, followed by some static. Then, a plain, faceless white-mask appears on the screen.
‘This is not a test,’ says a deep, automated voice. ‘This is an emergency broadcast system. A report of magic has been received by your government, and verified by the Witch-Hunter association.’
‘Oh shit…’ Gabriel whispers.
‘A curfew has been implemented. No civilians are permitted outside after eight pm. This is for your own safety. If you have concerns regarding the intentions of someone you know, call two-two-two, and report your concerns. If you see these men…’ The same photographs from the newspaper appear on the screen. ‘Call two-two-two.’ The mask returns. ‘You are encouraged to protect yourselves. Weapons, such as pepper-spray, monkey-fists, and bean-bag guns, are available for purchase and highly encouraged. Protect your families. Serve humanity. And most importantly… do not fear. The Witch Hunters are here.’
The image flickers, and then the whole message starts again.
After the third time, Gabriel clears his throat and turns off the sound.
‘Pack up and be ready to leave within the hour. We need to move.’
The room empties of all except Gabriel, Grayson and I. Grayson slumps heavily into a small armchair and only now do I see how forlorn and tired he is. There are bags under his eyes and worry in his usually determined features.
‘We can’t go out into the world. Not now Hunters are coming and our faces are out for all to see.’ Grayson says, looking defeated. ‘They’re selling weapons. Christ.’
‘Let’s just… forget them. Forget Hunters for a moment,’ I blurt out, which makes them both raise their brow. Sometimes it’s so painfully obvious they’re brothers. They share so many mannerisms. ‘They’re coming. We knew they would. So we need to get a move on and keep our focus. There are two rings. One is fake but the other isn’t and we need to get our hands on them both as soon as possible. Which one is closest?’ It suddenly strikes me that I have no idea where the hell we are right now.
‘The little oddity museum. It’s about a two-hour drive from here,’ Gabriel replies.
‘Great. Then we head there. I’ll go in as a tourist, have a look around and pick my moment to snatch the ring. Then we’ll head straight to London and get the other one.’
Grayson starts to laugh. I don’t miss the clear condescension. ‘Why the hell would I send you in alone to fetch the ring.’
‘Because our faces are all over the news,’ Gabriel quips.
‘I’ll send a Nomad.’
‘Oh. Is there one you trust enough to fetch it for you? Considering we haven’t even told them about the ring or the necklace yet because we still can’t be a hundred percent positive they’re loyal to us.’ I love that he’s sticking up for my plan. I love that he knows the reasons behind my plan and that he trusts them because he’s absolutely right. There is no one else trustworthy enough to do this alone.
‘I’ll go and wear a disguise,’ Grayson shrugs.
‘What, like a pair of glasses? Don’t be ridiculous,’ I scoff.
‘Watch yourself,’ he scorns.
‘Need I remind you that if any one of you dies, you all die. Who will look after the Nomads then? Hmm? Who will help me bring down the Veil?’
He gets to his feet, and he shows me something I’ve not seem from him before. Panic. But it’s masked well with fury. A trait both brothers share. ‘You are not walking into a place where you could be taken from us by Hunters. You think you know pain, Miss Hooper. Trust me. You do not.’
‘Tell me, if we lost you three, how many of our people would be slaughtered? I can’t protect them. I don’t even know where the Nomad camps are! I can’t access my magic, Grayson. Not without you. And we know that Theo, Jensen and Toby have people in your organisation feeding information through. He knew about the brand. Someone must have told him! You have to start trusting me and believing that I can help you. I can get in there and I can find my ancestors ring. I’ll get it. No matter what, I’ll get it.’
‘And if Hunters are at this museum and see you, they’ll snatch you up. They have the mark. The mark that burns hot when near magic. They will sense you. They will catch you. And they will kill you.’
‘Then let her have her magic when she goes in there. She’ll be able to protect herself,’ Gabriel argues.
‘No way. She’ll run.’
‘You have the Bloodstone. Even if I did run, you would find me and probably kill Amara. Plus, Gabriel will be with you. No way I leave him behind.’
‘You could die. The answer is no,’ he says through clenched teeth.
‘Have you forgotten the war?’ Gabriel hisses at him out of sheer frustration. ‘Have you forgotten the sound of innocents being slaughtered in the streets? Of children screaming as their mother’s throats were slit. As Hunters raided our homes, raping, killing and torturing everyone they could lay their hands on? Because I haven’t. We saw them cover children in oil and set them on fire. I still smell them burning! Their cries haunt my dreams. And it’s pretty damn obvious their hatred of us hasn’t lessened.’ There are tears in his eyes and a harrowing agony that causes mine to brim too. ‘I will not let that happen again. Our priority is completing the spell before the Hunters locate us. Every day we wait, more Hunters come. More of us will die. We simply don’t have the time to waste. Not now they know we are alive and who we are.’ He nods to the television still playing the public service announcement. ‘The word is out that the witches are back. Our faces are everywhere. And everyone is coming for us. We made a vow to save our people. If you choose to keep hiding, Grayson, you are simply choosing to die. You are choosing for us all to die. And I’m not ready to leave this world yet. Not now I have someone worth living in it for. So, let her do what she needs to do.’
‘Like I said, she is not going in alone!’
‘I’ll take her,’ Hendrix offers, as he appears in the doorway. ‘I’ll go with her and keep her safe. And in line. And if the shit does hit the fan, she can use her magic to get us out.’
‘You have jet black eyes and razor-sharp teeth,’ I tell him. ‘You’ll stick out like a sore thumb.’
Hendrix pulls out a dark pair of sunglasses and puts them on. ‘Ta-fucking-da.’
‘What about your teeth?’
‘I just won’t bite anyone.’ He shrugs, returning his sunglasses to his pocket. He turns his attention to Grayson. ‘I want the Veil down as much as you. I’ve been a loyal and obedient solider to you for five centuries. I’ll look after her and get that ring, or die trying. Gabriel is right. Our time of hiding is done. It really is now or never, Boss.’
We all watch Grayson. Gabriel’s hand is almost crushing mine as we wait. I see his brother’s mind racing with the what ifs. But then finally, Grayson gives a small, single nod.
‘Let’s go and get the rings.’
