Iron and Blood (47 page)

The Alekanovo stone’s fiery light erupted into the night sky and joined with the iridescent curtain of power raised by the four black-robed strangers. The energy swelled, too bright to watch, and then sent a powerful shockwave out from the circle, sweeping aside the hounds and the shadows with a blazing, scouring tide. To Jake, it felt as if the universe had gathered its breath and released it in a mighty blast.

Silence and darkness returned. Jake blinked, his vision still clouded. Rick righted himself and climbed back into his seat. Nicki smoothed her hair back with a shaking hand.

“Out of the frying pan…” Jake muttered as he saw two of the four dark-clad men moving toward the carriage. He reached for the controls to the Gatling gun, fearing the worst, but sparks flew as he touched the metal, and he jerked his hand back reflexively.

“We did not come to harm you,” one of the men said. “The hell hounds are gone. They will not trouble you again tonight.”

“Who are you?” Jake shouted.

“We are the
Logonje
,” said a dark-haired, bearded man in his early thirties. “I’m Father Matija. Andreas Thalberg feared for you and sent us to bring you back safely.” He looked at Nicki. “I believe your friend can vouch for us. We have met before.”

Nicki nodded. “He’s the one I told you about, the one who helped Renate keep that thing at Jasinski’s apartment from coming after us.”

“You carry a precious cargo,” Matija said. “Drive on, and we will make sure you reach your destination safely.”

At that, the four men stepped back from the road, and Charles urged the horses on. Jake stayed close to the Gatling gun.

“Renate and Matija knew each other, even before he showed up at Jasinski’s apartment,” Nicki said as the carriage drew away and the four priests faded into the darkness.

“I certainly appreciate the help, but I’m not sure that I’m ready to trust them just yet,” Jake replied. He retracted the Gatling gun and took his seat. “Then again, I’m not surprised the Thalbergs have called in reinforcements.”

“Reinforcements?” Rick mused. “Or allies? I can’t quite imagine Father Matija and his priests working
for
Andreas Thalberg, although if the threat was great enough, they might work
with
him.”

“Just as he worked with Renate,” Nicki added.

Jake shrugged. “I guess we’ll see. For the moment, if someone isn’t shooting at us or trying to rip our heads off, that’s good enough for me.”

When they arrived back at the Desmet house, Catherine was waiting for them in the kitchen. Mrs. Jones already had a kettle boiling and a first aid kit on the table. She tended to Jake’s cuts and bruises and wrapped his badly bruised and scraped shin while Catherine poured tea. Jake, Nicki, and Rick took turns recounting what had occurred at the museum, while Catherine listened intently. The set of her mouth and her grip on the fine tea cup gave evidence of her anger and fear.

“I’m just glad that you’re all back safely,” Catherine said when they had finished their tale. “And there was a message from Renate while you were out. She had a vision of danger—she was insistent that I pass along a warning.”

“Spot on, as usual,” Nicki replied, tossing off her tea and looking for some gin to replace it. “Did she say anything else?”

“Only that she thinks it wise for us to gather the whole group tomorrow night. By then, Drostan should have a report for us, and we may know more from Cady and the others as well.” Catherine fussed with one of the pins that held her hair in place, a sure sign she was upset.

“I do wish this whole matter were settled,” she said. “Bad enough what’s happened so far, but the longer this goes on, the worse it gets.”

“It’s turned out to be a lot bigger than just avenging Father’s death,” Jake said. “But we’re in too far to change our minds now. I just hope we can stay a step ahead of the people chasing us until we can figure out how to bring them down, once and for all.”

T
HE NEXT EVENING
, an unlikely group gathered at the Desmet house. Three of the
Logonje
priests stood watch in the shadows across the street. Inside, Jake, Nicki, and Rick spoke quietly with Andreas and Renate, while Cady and Catherine Desmet chatted about books as they waited for everyone to assemble. Father Matija stood to one side, talking in low tones with Drostan Fletcher. Though he couldn’t see him, Jake was sure that Wilfred lingered nearby, on hand to provide support in nearly any situation.

Kovach and Charles kept watch near the door. “I can’t protect you if everyone and his brother can just walk on in,” he muttered.

“If everyone’s here, let’s get started,” Catherine said, calling the group to attention. “I thought it would be best if we could all hear what’s new together.”

“Then let us get some scotch to settle our nerves, and we’ll fill you in,” Jake said.

He and Rick laid the Alekanovo stone and Marcin’s book on the table. Nicki dropped the ruined listening device next to them. Cady sidled up to the book, eyeing it with a scholar’s curiosity. Renate and Andreas circled the stone, and Jake wondered if they were testing it with their magic, sensing its strength.

“I don’t really know how that thing works,” Jake warned, “but the last two times it’s been around strong magic, it exploded. So if you’re going to poke at it with your powers, let’s not do it in the parlor.”

Andreas’s expression changed, the nearest thing to a smile Jake had ever seen on the vampire’s face, then he and Renate retreated to a respectful distance. Jake poured a scotch for himself and one each for Rick and Nicki, and then settled into the big, upholstered chair that had been his father’s favorite.

“The next time I complain about a black tie reception being boring, I hope someone reminds me of what it’s like to be exciting,” Jake began. The group listened intently to the recap Jake, Rick, and Nicki gave of the events at the reception and afterwards, ending with the perilous drive home.

Drostan recounted what had transpired at the Vesta Nine, his tale leaving everyone looking queasy. “I took liberties in asking Mitch Storm and his partner for help,” Drostan said, “I’ve worked with them before, and they’re good at what they do. Jacob and Hans haven’t reported back yet, but Mitch confirmed that the Department suspected Veles and Thwaites were mining something other than coal.”

“Tourmaquartz,” Rick replied. “Enough to make Veles and Thwaites even more powerful and wealthy. They can sell it for a fortune to arms dealers and despots in hot spots around the world and literally bring down kingdoms.”

“At least we know what happened to Karl Jasinski,” Renate said. “No one deserves that kind of an end.”

“And we know who was after the crate Jasinski asked Father to smuggle out of Poland, and what was in the crate,” Jake said, feeling the loss anew. “As well as who was responsible for his murder.”

“We’ve also got a pretty good answer to the killings along the rivers,” Drostan said. “Once the
gessyan
are free, they gravitate to where they can feed the best, and spread out so there aren’t too many predators in one place. Mitch and I are speculating that Veles might not be able to control the
gessyan
or bottle them back up, but he might be able to work some kind of magic to keep them from eating all the miners. So the Night Hag followed the rivers, and the hell hounds moved toward the old cemeteries, as did the wraiths.”

“Everything we’ve found out also explains Thwaites’s involvement, and the Oligarchy connection,” Rick said after a moment to consider what Drostan reported. “Veles contributed his magic, Thwaites brought his political connections to make sure they weren’t disturbed, and they both walk away with a fortune—and the power to change the destiny of nations. Breaking the miners’ union, if it came to that, would seem like a bonus.”

“Mitch and Jacob are not officially with the Department on this project,” Drostan said, and filled the others in on what he had learned from the agents. “They wanted another shot at Tumblety and Brunrichter, and those abominations they create. But if the Department has Vesta Nine under observation, it’s possible they could raid the place, and things could get complicated.”

“The clockwork corpses are only part of the problem,” Andreas reminded them. “There’s still the matter of the
gessyan
, both the spirits that have gotten loose as well as those still in the mines. Until they’re overpowered and the gateway is sealed, people will continue to die. Apparently, Veles can’t keep them contained and Jasinski didn’t have the stone and the book to help him succeed. So it’s up to us to bottle them back up.” He looked toward Drostan. “If the Department were to attack the mine without magic, I fear it would be a slaughter.”

“Veles and Thwaites probably have plans to make a quick getaway if they need to,” Rick added. “The tourmaquartz deposit is probably fairly small, given how rare it is. There’s no telling when they’ll decide they’ve gotten it all. “

“In which case, we need to move quickly,” Matija added. “Because more
gessyan
are likely to escape if a binding is not made soon.”

“And how do we do that?” Rick demanded.

“Carefully,” Renate replied without a hint of humor. “Andreas and I will work with Father Matija and his priests to deal with the
gessyan,
including the Night Hag—and make sure none of the other spirits escape.”

“Then we destroy the deep levels,” Andreas replied. “Jacob and his clockwork man are likely to confirm what I suspect—that the only workers at those depths are dead men and automatons. No one else can withstand either the conditions or the presence of the
gessyan
.”

Jake nodded. “That’s why Veles and Thwaites would have called in the mad scientist team. Automatons aren’t just cheap labor; they’re workers who will never breathe a word about what they see—and miners who can’t be killed because they’re already dead.” He paused. “We could see what help Eban Hodekin might be.”

Rick shivered. “I’d rather not, if it’s all the same to you.”

Jake shrugged. “I didn’t say we had to have him over for dinner. But kobolds know the mines. He could be valuable.”

Rick fixed Jake with a pointed stare. “‘Know the mines’?” he repeated incredulously. “In half the tales I’ve heard, they’re the ones who bring the ceiling down on the miners, or who lure them into dead-end tunnels where the air is bad.”

“It depends on who’s telling the tale,” Andreas said, bringing a halt to the argument. “In this case, I would say that caution is advised, though we should not rule out help where it can be found. We may yet have need of Hodekin.”

“Suppose we
can
shut down Vesta Nine,” Rick said. “Thwaites and Veles have a lot of influence. Won’t they just dig down and across from one of the other mines?”

“Maybe,” Andreas admitted. “But none of the other mines are nearly as deep as Vesta Nine, so it will take a while to reach that level again. Tourmaquartz is rare, so there’s no guarantee they’d find more of it. If they start up again, we’ll know how to counter it. And perhaps the
gessyan
are more than Veles wants to deal with, if he has a choice.” He paused. “I don’t think freeing them was part of a master plan, although Veles made the most of the panic as a diversion. And I’m sure he would love to control them if he could. He is very much an opportunist.”

“Blowing up the deep shafts sounds like something that would be right up Adam’s alley,” Rick said, and Jake heard a glimmer of glee in his friend’s voice. Rick shared Adam’s sheer joy in making things go boom.

“Even Veles would be hard pressed to stop a mine fire,” Andreas said. “Magic is better suited for starting such things than for putting them out.”

“How likely is it that the Oligarchy will retaliate?” Catherine mused. “After all, Thwaites is one of their number. Drogo Veles may or may not be a bona fide member, but he certainly has influence over them, and I don’t doubt many of them owe him favors. Consider Mr. Fletcher’s experience with the police; he may not be the only one at risk.”

“With men like Maguire gaining political power, the Oligarchy can’t afford to move too openly, or too heavy-handedly,” Matija replied. “Neither can Drogo Veles. It will remain, as it has been, a shadow war, with forces on both sides working just beyond the light.”

“And the federal agents?” Rick asked. “What do we do about them?”

“We need all the help we can get,” Jake replied. “Drostan already has the connection. If Jacob makes it out of the mine alive, his information will be essential for our attack.” He grinned. “They don’t have to know everything. And even if Mitch and his partner are operating on their own, having them involved might camouflage our role in all this.”

“I agree.”

Everyone turned to look at Catherine. She raised her chin, and her expression was defiant. “This has gone beyond Thomas’s murder. There have been far too many deaths. It needs to end. And we’re going to make sure that it does.”

“I
’M GOING CRAZY
down here.” Adam Farber set aside his wrench and flopped down into a chair. “And I need more coffee.”

Jake and Rick surveyed the clutter in the basement that had become Adam’s secret hideout. Coffee rings stained every table and countertop. Adam had rigged up a small coal oil stove to do his cooking and boil water for coffee. Jake and Rick made sure that food, coffee, ice for the ice box and the materials Adam needed for his work were delivered regularly and with appropriate stealth. And for once, Adam had the utter quiet that he so often claimed to crave; but it appeared to make him even twitchier than usual.