Hellfire

Chapter Sixty-Two

Five days had passed - five long days of undisturbed sleep. Morrigan hadn't come to me, which I hoped was a good sign. I mostly stayed in bed, sleeping deeply to recover from the physical and mental ordeal she'd had put me through. Lucius hadn't come to me either. Not a single bat, dream or whisper. He had closed himself away from me as solidly as he vowed – pretending I didn't matter. It was driving me mad – just desperate for a taste of him.

At the back end of the second day, I found myself wide awake and tense with energy. I couldn't keep still – anxious to be doing something now I was recovered and so very aware this wasn't my room, not my home where I could sit in my chair and do crosswords or playfight with the youngsters or lay by Lucius. I couldn't go near the house though, not while Eva was spinning her reality over Morrigan's eyes and one that could easily implode on us if anything went wrong. If Morrigan didn't take to Eva, if she didn't see her as Lucius' bride, if she sensed even a whisp of a lie from either of them, then everything went to shit.

I decided to visit Tabitha. I wanted to see her and Cynthia, but especially Doc. I knew he was alive, but that his healing was slow – a curse upon his body and one that required Tabitha's focus. Now was the first time since Morrigan's waking that I could visit.

Stan hadn't been happy at seeing me leaving, but he quickly gave up when I'd snapped my teeth at him. I kept low as I moved through the city. No running, no mist, no car, just my feet. I didn't want to draw Morrigan's attention to me – I wanted her trusting Eva's lies. My trainers splashed deep into the puddles left by the daytime's rains, and my cap was low over my eyes, keeping myself as unrecognisable as possible. The walk riled my temper though, rather than calmed it liked I hoped. Without Morrigan housing me, I noticed the city for the first time since the killings began. I knew it had been bled dry, I had seen it, even had a hand in some, but I always closed myself to it as Morrigan watched me, willing me to make a slight mistake. The city was dead. Empty. Once, I had felt magic from all directions of all kinds. Now, a hollow breeze shifted through the streets. Human life still carried on as per normal, purring cars and constant chatter, but there was just nothing of the Old World anymore. Buildings that had once been Old World flickered with dying lights, blood staining broken windows or smeared over the walls and doorways. Demons hung from them, clinging to the walls and chittering with warning when I passed, staring with the black eyes and smiling teeth. Some of them feasted in alleys – tearing apart those frozen by Morrigan and left that way – mouths gorging through the ice and ripping away frosted flesh. Here and there I sensed someone, just a small pocket of life, and my heart sunk whenever I did. When Morrigan began her hunting again, those pockets would be found. She'd either eat them or kill them - unless Eva did a good job and convinced Morrigan to accept her as the perfect bride for Lucius.

The closer I drew to Tabitha's club, the more I found the frozen or bits of the dead, but I always found more life. I stepped into the club entrance, finding it wrenched and broken and the ceiling high up alive with white bats, but beneath my feet, life ebbed. Magic. Tabitha had gathered those who couldn't or wouldn't run in the depths of her club - the only bastion within the city from Morrigan's endless hunger.

I stepped forward, my shoes crunching over broken glass and dipping into rainwater puddles that had sprayed inside, and watched as the lights flickered miserably in the darkness, highlighting just how much blood was spilt in here. Not all of it was from the night Morrigan woke, congealed and black and staining the once pristine walls and carpet. Some of it was fresh and tiny white bodies were littered here and there in dark puddles – wings torn free and the heads devoured by thick teeth. I crouched down next to one dead bat, observing it had likely been slain some days ago. Lucius had warned me Tabitha was often a target for Morrigan. When I was incapacitated and Alistair couldn't calm her, it was Tabitha she went for – not to kill, but just to harm in every way she could manage.