It was some time since the notoriously rakish DeMortalis had actually been in disgrace, but it was true that until recently he had not been respectable. The Duke had fought against the Queen in the Great War. She had spared his life only because of his immaculate dress and ready wit. That was many hundreds of years ago, and recent events on the Great Volcano, where DeMortalis had fought quite heroically at the Queen’s side against the attempted coup, had raised the Duke high in the public’s estimation.
The Fire Queen smiled. “I suppose he is not. But he still has a notable weakness for pretty kitchen maids.”
The Fire Queen suddenly sagged in her chair, causing Iskiline to smudge her eyeliner.
“He also retains his cruel wit. One dreads to think what he may say about the ‘fashionable party people’ debacle. Even now he may be fashioning hurtful barbs.”
Despite her fears, Malveria arrived at the reception as if she had not a care in the world. She was perfectly attired and perfectly in control of her aura. She greeted the new ambassador with overwhelming court politeness, and was relieved to see that while he did tower over her, he was not so tall as to force her to crane her neck at an unbecoming angle. She had a pleasant conversation with him and thought, once again, that the stone giants were a much more civilized race than their neighbors, the stone dwarves. The dwarves, or Maynista, as they were properly called, were not on good terms with the Fire Queen, and their ambassador rarely attended her receptions.
“Mighty Queen, you are looking more splendid than ever.” Beau DeMortalis presented himself with an elegant bow. He was dressed in an immaculate dark-blue frock coat, customary formalwear for a Hiyasta duke. Around his collar he wore a piece of white lace, knotted to perfection.
“DeMortalis. How pleasant to see you. Was your visit to your distant estates a pleasant one?”
“The distant estates are never pleasant. It’s a relief to return to civilization.” The Duke smiled winningly. “And always a pleasure to see the Queen again.”
Beau DeMortalis looked around the room. “I’m surprised at the turnout. I didn’t expect to see Garfire and Stratov here . . . When did they start attending official court functions?”
The Fire Queen felt herself tensing, wondering if the Duke was about to unleash some wounding comment about her suitors. The moment passed, but before she could relax the Honorable Gloria blundered up and stood right in front of DeMortalis.
“DeMortalis, Duke of the Black Castle? What a pleasure to meet you!”
The Fire Queen frowned, and was almost moved to shake her head in disapproval. It was so like the Honorable Gloria to ignore court protocol and simply barge into a conversation and introduce herself.
And really, thought the Queen. There is no need to look so longingly at the Duke. He already knows he is the most handsome man in the room.
CHAPTER 74
Manny lived in an old block of flats in Clerkenwell, north of the river. His block was part of a red-brick estate, built at the end of the nineteenth century, originally owned by the local council but now mostly private. He had a small flat at the top of the block on the fourth floor. The living room was crowded with his paintings and the hall was mostly occupied by his bike. Fortunately, Manny had few other possessions. There was a TV in the corner, several large cushions to sit on and almost nothing else. His bedroom, also full of paintings, had bare floorboards, a rug and an old futon next to a radiator, which made gurgling noises in the night and never heated up properly. Kalix felt quite comfortable in his small flat.
“I would have tidied up,” said Manny, “but . . .” He raised his arms hopelessly. With so many paintings everywhere, and paint, and brushes and an easel, there was no way of making the place look tidy.
Kalix didn’t mind. She thought it must be difficult to paint in such a small space, though the light was quite good.
“I paint at college; I’ve a lot of work there. But I can’t afford a studio yet.”
Kalix understood; Manny was still a student. Daniel and Moonglow were always short of money too, and Kalix herself wouldn’t have survived without money from her family.
Ascending the narrow staircase up to the fourth floor, Kalix had noticed that she wasn’t feeling anxious at all. That was unusual. Visiting someone she didn’t know very well would normally have brought on anxiety, and even panic. There was something about Manny that seemed quite calming.
Maybe it’s because he’s so girly, she thought, and then wondered if that was a bad thing to think. I’d better not say he looks girly. It might be an insult.
With his wavy blond hair, soft features and blue eyes, he was certainly different from any MacRinnalch Kalix had ever been involved with. Gawain and Decembrius had both been prone to scowling and looking moody. Manny seemed quite the opposite.
“I forgot to buy any food,” he announced cheerfully after Kalix arrived.
“I don’t mind,” said Kalix. “I don’t want to eat.”
“I should get something. I’ll feel guilty if I don’t offer you anything. I always get carried away painting and forget to do anything else.”
Kalix didn’t care if he had any food or not, but Manny did seem quite guilty about not having anything in the fridge, so she agreed to accompany him to the small supermarket on the main road.
“We can get beer anyway,” she said.
Manny peered in the small mirror in the hallway. “Do you like these earrings?” He had a lot of earrings, two in one ear and four in the other.
Kalix nodded.
“Good. I wasn’t sure about them.”
Manny opened the front door. Kalix walked out and was profoundly shocked to meet Thrix. They stared at each other in astonishment.
“What are you doing here?” demanded Kalix. “Are you following me?”
“Of course I’m not following you,” said her sister.
“Then what are you doing here?”
Thrix struggled for an explanation. She was obviously as surprised as Kalix.
“I’m visiting someone,” she said.
Kalix, enraged at this intrusion into her private life, knew that wasn’t true. Manny’s flat was right at the end of the corridor. Thrix couldn’t have been going anywhere else.
“Who are you visiting?”
“I must have the wrong address,” said Thrix.
“Uh . . . hello,” said Manny hesitantly.
Kalix’s mind whirled. She had no idea what to say to Manny. How could she possibly explain that her sister had mysteriously followed her there?
“Don’t follow me!” she shouted at Thrix, for want of anything better to say.
“I wasn’t following you!” shouted Thrix.
Kalix and Thrix glared at each other with loathing. Thrix turned on her heel and marched away as quickly as she could. Kalix and Manny watched her go.
“Who was that?” asked Manny.
“My sister.”
“What was she doing here?”
“I’ve no idea,” said Kalix.
“Does she often follow you around?”
“No. I don’t know why she came here.”
Kalix felt as embarrassed as she’d ever felt in her life. She was at a complete loss as to why Thrix had suddenly appeared. Now Manny thinks I’ve got a mad older sister who follows me around. It’s so humiliating.
Manny put his arm through hers and smiled. “Never mind. These things happen. There are a lot of flats here and the blocks all look the same. She might just have gotten the wrong address.”
Kalix was grateful to Manny for making light of it, even though it seemed obvious that her sister wouldn’t have turned up at his flat by coincidence.
“Let’s go get some beer. And food, if we see anything we like.”
Kalix allowed herself to be led gently along to the stairs, but Thrix’s unexpected appearance had upset her and brought on some anxiety. She cursed her sister for apparently trying to spoil her date, and made up her mind to confront her about it when they next met.
r /> I’ll teach her to spy on me, thought Kalix, and she felt very angry.
CHAPTER 75
Thrix hurried downstairs. She drove off in a state of confusion and parked a few streets away, to call Dominil.
“Dominil? Something very strange just happened. You know that list of addresses you gave me?”
“I told you it was out of date.”
“Well, I thought I’d check some of them anyway.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to kill a werewolf hunter, that’s why.”
Dominil waited for Thrix to continue.
“I checked out a few of them. Either they were empty, or the tenants were obviously not hunters. But I just drove to an address in Clerkenwell. The last address on the list. It’s an old block of flats.” Thrix paused.
“What happened?” asked Dominil.
“Kalix was there.”
“Kalix? You mean she’d gone there looking for werewolf hunters too?”
“No,” said Thrix. “I mean she was there making a social call.”
“That’s odd.”
“I’d say it was more than odd. I’d say it was so strange that it can’t just be a coincidence.”
“Is Kalix all right?”
“She was fine. She was with some young man. I didn’t recognize him. I’m sure he wasn’t a hunter though, I can usually tell.”
There was a long pause.
“So what do you think?” asked Thrix.
“I really don’t know. It is strange that Kalix should be at an address previously used by the Avenaris Guild. Coincidences between werewolves and werewolf hunters tend to not be coincidences at all.”
“I know,” said Thrix.
“Did Kalix actually see you there?”
“Yes,” said Thrix. “Which is going to be hard to explain. Now she thinks I’m spying on her.”
“We’ll need to investigate further. Meanwhile, you shouldn’t be driving around randomly looking for hunters. It’s much more important that you make progress with our plan.”
“Don’t tell me what I should be doing,” snapped Thrix. “I’m the one who has to do all this complicated sorcery to get us into the ball. If I want to look for werewolf hunters too, that’s my affair.”
Thrix rang off. Talking to Dominil hadn’t enlightened her and it had made her bad mood worse. Her headache was returning. She fumbled in the glove compartment for painkillers.
How on earth did Kalix end up in a flat that used to be used by the Avenaris Guild? she wondered again, but could see no explanation. And who was that boy?
Thrix drove home, puzzled and concerned. She felt frustrated that she hadn’t managed to meet any members of the Guild. She had a yearning to kill hunters that was getting stronger all the time. When she arrived home she changed immediately into her werewolf shape. She let out a low growl and paced around her living room, frustrated and annoyed.
“I’m going to kill them all,” she said, again.
Thrix knew she should be working on her sorcery. It took her a long time before she felt capable of making a start. As she sat at her desk, writing out the list of spells she’d need, she could feel the ever-present knot inside her, constantly irritating her and breaking her concentration.
If I don’t kill a werewolf hunter soon I’m going to explode, she thought, and was then distracted by images of what she was going to do to the Avenaris Guild when she finally managed to invade their headquarters.
CHAPTER 76
Two days before St. Amelia’s Ball, excitement was growing in the small flat in Kennington. It increased when Moonglow appeared downstairs in a strapless black ball gown that rendered Daniel completely speechless.
“Moonglow!” cried Vex. “You look fantastic!”
Moonglow had been concerned that attending the charity ball might entail wearing something summery or floaty, which she knew she’d hate. On perusing the photos she’d found of past events, white seemed to be the main color of choice. However, there were some colorful dresses as well: girls in red and blue. She decided that she’d risk wearing something dark, and hope it wasn’t too out of place. Moonglow had proceeded to scour the local charity shops. It had been a long search, and she’d been forced to travel further afield, visiting a charity shop in Chelsea where she paid a lot more than she’d intended to for a dress. She was pleased with the result.
Agrivex was impressed enough to shout up the stairs, “Kalix, come and see Moonglow looking really great in a dress.”
“You look wonderful,” said Daniel, recovering his power of speech. He had a sudden urge to ask how the dress stayed up, given that it was strapless, but refrained in case it was a foolish question.
“What are you screaming about?” said Kalix, appearing from her room. She stopped when she saw Moonglow. “Moonglow, you look great!”
Moonglow was gratified. She couldn’t ever remember Kalix saying any clothing was great before.
“You’re all set for your date with the viscount,” said Vex. “It’s so romantic! I read a story just like it in Total Boyfriend. Poor girl goes to ball, rich prince falls in love with her and they get married. You’ll probably end up Queen or something.”
Moonglow laughed. Daniel didn’t. He’d been trying to forget about Moonglow’s date. He looked at Moonglow’s bare shoulders, very pale against the black fabric of her dress, and wondered if he might be able to spend the whole evening at the ball getting in between Moonglow and her date.
“When are you getting your clothes?” asked Moonglow.
“Tomorrow,” said Vex. “Then we have to practice.”
Kalix, Daniel and Vex, as models at the afternoon event, were required to rehearse their appearance. Thrix had assured them that nothing complicated was expected. They just had walk down the catwalk.
“It won’t even be a proper catwalk,” she’d told them. “From what I can gather, the models just walk down a small platform.”
Vex had regained her enthusiasm for their enterprise. Daniel was still convinced he was going to make a fool of himself. Kalix had hardly spoken about it. The bad feelings between her and Thrix had made all their meetings uncomfortable for Daniel and Vex. Last time they’d been at Thrix’s office, Kalix and Thrix had ended up screaming at each other. It took an intervention by Dominil to produce an uneasy truce for the rest of the day.
Daniel checked the time. “Dominil will be here soon.”
“We’re getting spying instructions!” said Vex. “It’s so exciting!”
At exactly the arranged time, the doorbell rang. Vex charged downstairs. She led Dominil upstairs under a barrage of questions.
“Who’s the chief spy? Is it you? Do you have ninja powers? Do we have secret identities? Do we need weapons? Do we have a secret code? What if there’s a bomb?”
Dominil was doing her best to ignore Vex’s questions but was moved to react to the last one. “A bomb? Why would there be a bomb?”
“You often see bombs in spy stories,” said Vex. “Hidden under a table, maybe. Or even strapped to the hero’s leg by the villains. What do we do if someone straps a bomb to our legs? Do we have a plan for that?”
“There will be no bombs,” said Dominil. She looked at Moonglow.
“From the dress you’re wearing I assume you have somehow acquired an invitation to the ball and are now determined to join in with the activities of your flatmates?”
Moonglow was impressed by the white-haired werewolf’s powers of deduction. “Uh . . . yes. Is that OK?”
“I see no harm in it,” said Dominil. “I was expecting you to force yourself in somehow. Kalix, Daniel, Vex—are you clear on our aims at the ball?”
“Not really.”
“Not entirely.”
“No.”
“Did you read my notes?”
“What notes?”
Dominil pursed her lips. “I will refresh your memory. We’re trying to find the location of the Avenaris Guild’s headquarters. Very few people know this. We hope
that some attendees at the ball will. If they do, we hope to obtain it.”
“What attendees?” asked Moonglow.
“Kabachetka, principally,” said Dominil. “Why do you grimace at her name? Have you encountered her?”
“We once knocked her out with a bottle,” said Daniel. “Well, Moonglow did. I lent moral support.”
Daniel and Moonglow had found themselves involved in the great werewolf feud, when Kabachetka had used her sorcery against the MacRinnalchs. As Daniel accurately reported, Moonglow had knocked her out in an alleyway in Camden. It was the single act of violence he’d ever known her to commit.
“She’s not going to be very pleased to see you again,” said Vex.
“I don’t think she knew it was me. I sneaked up behind her.” Moonglow asked Dominil the same question she’d been asked before. “Surely Kabachetka isn’t going to just tell us where the Guild is?”
“She won’t, but she may have companions there. Her secretary and her adviser, possibly. Some opportunity may present itself for finding the information. A representative from the Guild may even attend. If you’re about to say it sounds like a tentative plan, spare yourself the trouble.”
Moonglow did think it was a tentative plan, but she was as keen as the others were to spy, so she didn’t mind. Feeling that she might not have been hospitable enough to Dominil, she went to the kitchen to make tea. Daniel followed her.
“Kalix,” said Dominil. “Thrix assures me it was a coincidence that she encountered you at your friend’s flat. She was not following you.”
“It seems like a strange coincidence,” said Kalix.
“I agree. However, it was not deliberate. I admit I’m troubled by it. Thrix was checking on addresses that had once been used by the werewolf hunters.”
“That’s stupid,” said Kalix. “There weren’t any hunters there.”
“Are you absolutely sure you saw no sign of anything that could suggest the Guild may have had an interest in your friend’s flat?”
Kalix became annoyed. “Of course I’m sure. The whole thing is stupid. Thrix probably just made it up about the address.”