Tearing The Shroud (33 page)

‘I’m confused, or worried or...’ She waved her other hand. ‘You’re different now — not completely, but it’s noticeable. And I still love you. So does that mean I want you or Coleman or Vinni? And what if you die? Or I do? Or...’ She shook her head.

She heard him inhale several times as if to speak, but still he didn’t. They sat quietly for a long time looking out over the ocean. The dark water perfectly matched the low-hanging clouds. A few bright shafts of light streamed through them, creating golden patches of water.

‘Jule, there’s something that I’ve come to accept with this whole thing. I don’t know if it will help.’

‘Yes?’

‘All we can do is all we can do.’

She lowered her brows and he went on in response.

‘This is life for us right now and we can’t change it. All we can do is the best we manage with this moment,
this
life. I don’t mean that we shouldn’t make plans, or have goals, but whatever happens, or whoever we are, we fail only when we don’t give our all.’

She gazed at him and they silently drank in one another. Jule noticed the dark flecks in his blue eyes.
Had they always been there?

After a long moment he looked away, out over the ocean. Jule leaned her head on his shoulder. She felt his breath against her cheek and inhaled, her life and his own intertwining.

But should I let it? Is it right, or even safe?

The sunset lit the clouds in vibrant colors — the display, like their lives, changing as they watched.

‘Hey, have you noticed anything different when you look in the mirror?’ she asked.

‘I don’t think so. Why?’

‘Let me show you.’ She took the compact from her purse and handed it to him. He held it up and looked at them.

‘What am I looking for?’

She ran her finger over the light scar.

‘Hey, where’d that come from?’ He pulled the mirror closer.

‘When you Joined, you passed out and hit your forehead. It was cut pretty badly.’

‘I don’t remember any of this.’ He poked and pulled at the barely discernible scar.

‘The wound healed in less than a minute. It didn’t disappear, but...’ She gestured at it again.

‘But...how...’ He stiffened and his mouth worked.

‘It’s okay. This is a good thing.’ She patted his chest. Jule stood and offered her hand. ‘Let’s get to dinner.’

He stared up at her for a long moment, then nodded and took it.

Jule

Jule glided around the front of the love seat where he sat, her back to him. She wore a pair of tight jean short-shorts that showed just enough of her rounded butt cheek to make him want to see more. She’d opted for a white blouse, tied above her firm stomach and when she turned around he saw that the buttons were undone. Only the knot held it together. She stepped to him and straddled his legs, sitting on his knees.

‘Jule...what — ’

‘Shhh.’ She placed a finger on his lips. ‘The guys are asleep.’

He tried to talk, but his mouth seemed filled with cotton. Jule arched her back and started untying her blouse. ‘I’ve been thinking...Vincent...’ One part of it came free. ‘Coleman is really the one I want.’

Vincent’s eyes bolted open, his heart raced as he glanced around his bedroom. He flopped his head back onto the pillow with a sigh and kicked off the twisted sheets. Uncertainty percolated through him.
Just a dream. That’s all. Right?

His question went unanswered.

Coleman?

Vincent searched for him, but couldn’t find a trace of his Companion. He breathed deeply, fighting the panic that gripped his chest like a vice. If Coleman was gone, there must be a reason. As the feeling subsided, his previous unease coiled around him like a snake. Though he knew what he’d told Jule was right, a lifetime of self-doubt didn’t just disappear. Without Coleman’s buoying influence, it came back with a vengeance. Why
wouldn’t
she prefer Coleman?

Where were you?

No! I couldn’t sense you at all.

Vincent blushed.
No, I was dreaming about something...else.

Happy to be off the subject, Vincent pressed on.
I never thought about this before. Maybe when we sleep we go into ourselves.

So, somehow you got closed off from me. I wonder if you could do it when we’re awake?

Chapter 28

The Summoning
The Same Day
Callendel

Justus exited the carriage, holding the shoulder of his coachman until he planted feet and cane firmly on the gravel driveway of his home. He looked up at it while melancholy and excitement warred within him. The mansion dwarfed everything around it and symbolized the power he had developed over a lifetime.

Imported creamy stone formed the entire structure. Two fat towers joined the wings of the mansion to the front in a flat-bottomed ‘V,’ each wing larger than three homes. The interior courtyard faced spectacular views of the harbor far below. Soaring spires thrust into the air at each corner, and slate tiles covered the steeply sloped roofs. Leaded glass windows refracted the light of the dying day on their diamond shaped panes.

He hobbled past the tall iron-spiked fence and hedge that surrounded the property, admiring the lush gardens from which he concocted his potions. Those new lands wouldn’t have anything that matched them in variety, or usefulness. One had to pay certain prices to achieve their goals. Justus nodded. He was willing to do so, whatever that cost might be.

‘Laurence, see me inside,’ he called.

‘Yes, Sire.’ Laurence walked from the door and offered his arm.

They entered the expansive foyer and Laurence removed his master’s coat, hanging it in the closet near the door.

‘All is ready for this evening?’

‘Yes, Sire. Would you care for refreshments?’

‘No, that will not be necessary.’

His lifelong servant bowed his head and departed.

‘Pae! Pae, where are you? You worthless bird.’

The black parrot sang out and moments later sailed gracefully around the corner, landing on a stand near the door. He fixed an eye on Justus and squawked.

‘Yes, indeed. Tonight is the first without Lunos. We begin at sunset.’

‘Awp,’ Pae replied.

He looked out at the failing light. ‘Ah, so it is.’ He shook his head. ‘Time passes so swiftly.’ Justus hobbled out the glass-paned doors and turned left on a stone path leading to the laboratory. As he reached door, it swung open, revealing Laurence and Pae.

‘He told you I was coming?’ Justus asked.

‘Indeed, Sire.’

The usual collections of beakers, burners, vials, jars, books, ingredients, and equipment had been removed. Small yellow rocks lined the circular groove in the stone floor, nestled in accelerant powder.

‘I’ve left nothing to chance, Pae,’ Justus said. He had purchased the entire crop of
pellundium
two years in advance.

‘The more potent the tincture, the better the result.’ He waved a bony finger at the counter where Pae stood. ‘Thus, I have tripled the concentration.’ Glancing at the ring of yellowstone, he said, ‘Additionally, I’ve increased the containment ward.’ He settled on a cot covered in supple leather. A glowing brass brazier stood nearby, with a quiver of long tapers angled toward him.

‘Laurence, leave us and bar the doors. I will call for you or send Pae. I’ve provided for your wellbeing with sums to last beyond your years. Speaking of which, continue the training of your nephew as a replacement.’

‘Most assuredly, Sire.’ Laurence bowed low and exited. Justus heard the bar settle into place, followed by the second a few moments later.

‘Let’s be at this.’ He rubbed his gnarled, arthritic hands and retrieved a taper, igniting it in the coals. ‘Blasted hands,’ he muttered, as the taper wobbled toward the accelerant. After several attempts, it flared to life, spreading rapidly around the circle. The yellowstone ignited with a bright blue flame, settling into a consistent flicker. Over the next several minutes, the little rocks melted and a viscous red liquid seeped from them. Justus watched the progress attentively.

‘We must have an unbroken pool of the substance, or our guest might decide to roam about, which would be...unpleasant.’

‘Mmm.’ The parrot nodded.

The blood-like liquid reached halfway up the sides of the little trough, and Justus said, ‘That will do it.’ He lit another taper and held it to a second small channel. Accelerant flared to life and ran to an inner circle filled with the resinous tincture used for the summoning. It caught, burning with a sickly green color.

Justus breathed deeply, inhaling the acrid fumes, and intoned the words of summoning, ‘
Veostum flahn spiend lsthoosvar oon spandulass
.’ He repeated the enchantment, emphasizing the words differently. The third repetition he shouted at the top of his lungs. The circle of green fire flared; just before extinguishing, it burst into a brilliant cylinder that surged to the stone ceiling. Instead of spreading onto its surface, the flames formed a column of the sickly light. He expected a cacophony of tortured animals. This time however, noise sucked from the laboratory, leaving only the sound of his rapidly beating heart pounding in his ears. Then, without warning, the column disappeared.

Justus flinched and blinked rapidly. Apprehension flooded him.
Had he overdone the potency?
His eyes cleared, revealing a figure. He’d thought to see a slavering monstrosity similar to the one that transported his Essence before — this was not the case.

A young man, well dressed in a dark red waistcoat of the latest fashion, stood in the center circle. His light skin was vibrant and clear, hair platinum blond and neatly trimmed at shoulder length, and his eyes were the blue of a clear winter’s sky. He wore black pants tucked into matching leather knee-high boots with brass buckles down the sides. His shirt was white and collarless, adorned with a black ascot. He could have stepped into the most lavish party in the city and not been out of place.

He looked around the room as if wondering how he’d arrived. Then his eyes fixed on Justus, and he stepped casually forward. The corners of his full lips rose in a small smile. He dipped his aquiline nose and chiseled features slightly, speaking in a melodious voice, ‘And who is it that summons us this evening?’

Justus had prepared for a battle, ready to impose his will over the creature from the Abyss, as he had in the past. This polite young gentleman took him completely off guard.

‘I am Justus,’ he said loudly then felt foolish for doing so, and started again in a civil voice, ‘I am Justus.’

‘So you are.’ The man appraised him with a perfectly arched brow. ‘We had thought you to be younger. What is it you seek from us?’

‘I deman...I desire passage across the Shroud and a willing subject to house my Essence.’

‘Ahhh, so you
are
he.’ The young man smiled broadly, revealing a feature that would cause alarm at the ball Justus had envisioned him attending. His white, perfectly formed teeth all ended in sharp points.

‘Yes, I am...he,’ Justus said. What in the name of the Abyss was the Being speaking of?

‘We see we must explain ourself.’ He smiled pleasantly as he strolled about the circle. ‘You have availed the powers of Abyss in the past, have you not?’ He nodded at Pae then looked knowingly back at Justus.

‘Pae was my first effort; then twelve years previously, I made the journey myself. Now, at this appointed hour, I call upon them once again.’

The young man chuckled, but what came from his mouth sounded like several people laughing at once. It made Justus’ skin itch. ‘Yes, our minions informed us of your efforts and their short-lived success. That was due, in part, to the weakness of our minions and the results spoke for themselves. They have been reprimanded for their poor performance, and thus, we have taken a personal interest in the matter.’

Justus nodded. ‘It bodes well that your Master has sent you.’

A smile displayed his carnivorous teeth prominently. ‘Oh dear Justus, you do mistake us. We are the Master.’

The audacity
. Did this
thing
take him to be a fool? Justus laughed, long and well.

The young man waited while he recovered, wiping the tears from his eyes. ‘You find this information amusing?’

He shook his head, still chuckling. ‘I thought you to be unique but find you’re like your brethren. You’ll tell any lie to be released from the circle.’

‘This?’ He indicated the line of blood red around him. ‘This is well and good for lesser beings, but we assure you such parlor tricks hold no sway over us.’ He stepped over the powerful ward as if it were a crack in the floor.

Panic sliced him with its razor edge and had Justus been a younger man he would have made for the door. Age brought wisdom, but in this case he would have traded a good portion of that for speed.

The Being walked to the cot and sat. ‘Would you care to reconsider your statement?’

Justus blanched, and sweat beaded his forehead. He managed a trembling nod. The ward should have held
any
Abyssal creature.

‘Excellent.’ The silver-haired thing smiled.

Justus struggled not to recoil. His teeth were
much sharper
at this distance
.

‘We have followed your doings, and as our purposes are similar, we have come to oversee the matter ourselves.’

‘Y-you seek to live eternally?’ Justus asked.

An alabaster hand waved regally. ‘By the Abyss, no; we have quite enough of that. We seek an expedient means across the Shroud. Not for us, of course. Rather for our pets — you refer to them as Kafla.’

Justus inclined his head. ‘How, great Master, shall I refer to you?’

‘You shall not have our True name, sly one.’ The corners of his mouth turned up. ‘We have been called many things by many tongues, but Master will suffice.’

‘Certainly, Master. How might this humble servant assist one such as you?’