The Jezebels of Bedlam.

Chapter 33 - Not Guilty, Not Innocent.

Mordecai led Christian to a large yurt, which was quite luxurious inside. Myrddin was seated on a sumptuous sofa. He appeared thinner but otherwise well. He did not seem too surprised to see him and stood up to shake his hand.

"Detective Berg, I guess you're a Warrior convert, huh?"

"It's good to see you back to normal Myrddin. Please, call me Christian. Besides I'm not a detective anymore. I quit.

"I can't say I'm surprised. You're a good man. It's a sordid case, not one for decent cops who want to tell the truth. Du Malum Corp. will come out smelling like roses, you'll see."

"Yeah, I think you're right. They're helping Papadopoulos. He was granted bail."

Myrddin flinched but didn't say anything. He wasn't surprised.

Christian continued. "They told me you're a suspect. Are you guilty? I know you don't have to tell me anymore, but I would like to help you Myrddin. If that's even possible." He sighed heavily.

"I didn't kill any of those victims Christian, but I'm not innocent either."

"I don't follow."

Myrddin began to pace nervously. Looking directly into Christian's eyes he said, "I was ritually raped and tortured by my own uncle. He was a paedophile. I wasn't the only one he hurt. I killed him."

Christian didn't know what to say. As a father, he was thinking one less maggot in the world...but it was still murder. "Was it, self-defence?" he asked the question out loud almost to himself.

"No. It was not. The rapes occurred over a two-week period when my mother was receiving treatment. She had brain cancer. My uncle took me, to give dad a break. There was no one else around. He had complete custody.

"My brother was away in boarding school, but for some reason, I had been kept at home — something about doctor's appointments. I don't remember why, but it has always puzzled me. It was mum that was sick, not me. Yet, I spent considerable time with a doctor who did all sorts of tests.

"My uncle drove me to the appointments, but the doctor would never let him in the room while she examined me. She said my mother had told her not too. I liked that doctor. She wouldn't tell my uncle anything about the tests. I asked her about them, but I never understood her answer. She said mum wanted me checked for hidden things that could make me sick when I got bigger. I've never understood what that meant.

"I did try to tell that doctor. I think maybe she did believe me, but I never saw her again after that. After...I'd told her, I mean. No one in my family besides my mother had believed me when I tried to tell them as a child. Mum was dying. She couldn't protect me. I had no one. I knew that one day I would make Harold pay for those weeks of torture."

Christian didn't dare interrupt. He could tell that this was difficult for him to talk about. Myrddin persevered.

"And so, I waited. At the age of fifteen, I befriended him. I got him to trust me again. My mother had long since died and my father had remarried. Long story short I got myself thrown out of home. My father had completely cut me off, even refused to pay my school fees, so I had few options anyway. I moved into my uncle's home. I was older now, so he wasn't interested in me that way anymore."

Oh God! Christian felt ill.

"I asked him to teach me his magic. It was black magic, horrible. I told him I wasn't going to use the knowledge to harm innocent people, and I swear to you I never did. If I ever saw kids on the premises, I got them out of there. Still, I wasn't there all the time. I don't know what may have gone on when I wasn't around, but I can assure you that I wanted no part in it."

"I believe you," Christian said.

"That man, however, was another matter. He was not innocent. I could hurt him. I wanted to. I did."

Myrddin walked over to an ornate coffee table where a pottery jug and goblets were perched. He poured himself and Christian some lime scented water and drank deeply. Christian did not dare speak for fear Myrddin would not be able to continue, but after a moment he resumed his story.

"There were two houses on his property. The modern main house and a smaller cottage at the back that he used as a temple. Once I turned eighteen, I attacked him in that cottage. I was legally an adult and I knew he'd made me his heir. I cast a spell to make him spontaneously combust. The plan was to make it look like he died in a fire but what I didn't count on was the fact that because there wasn't a body, I couldn't prove he was dead. Legally he was just missing, so I couldn't claim the estate for seven years, in case he suddenly showed up. I was free, however, and he would never hurt another child again."

"And this is why you can't enter Tweldor?" Christian's question was more like a statement.

"I didn't tell them initially but they could sense that I had a secret — that I was hiding something dark, and yes, that is why I was denied entry."

"Was?"

"Well now that I've come clean, they need to make sure I am telling them the truth and that I haven't used black magic since."

"Have you?" Christian asked.

"I'm not sure, to be honest. I performed a ritual with Zoiia. I thought it was just a bit of fun — a spell for great sex, but with that woman, who knows? I guess they'll be able to figure out somehow if I'm telling the truth. Am I Anakin Skywalker or am I Darth Vader?

"Wow, okay! So, when is this big appraisal then? Sounds like I'll be having one too," Christian said.

Myrddin smiled wryly. "Yours will be a simple assessment, Christian. You haven't courted the devil as I have. For you, it will be a walk in the park. You truly are Luminous Warrior material. My appraisal will be a lot more complex, but it can't happen until my witness is here."

"Witness? Witness to what?"

"Apparently, they will be interviewing someone whom I may have directly affected." Myrddin exhaled sharply.

Christian hoped that it wasn't Gwendolyn. After what Myrddin had just shared with him, how could he tell him that it was his little sister who had betrayed him?