Читать книгу The Blood She Betrayed - Cheryse Durrant - Страница 10

Guilt raked his spine. `I didn't—'

`Do you understand me?'

`Why? What did I do?'

`Never touch it!'

It was just a pendant, however exquisite, and it wasn't like he was trying to nick it but his action had earned him a blistering glare.

`I'm really sorry,' he said, hoping to ease the situation.

A pale blush stole across her cheekbones as she broke away from him. Her violet eyes shifted uneasily. `Apology accepted,' she said, but she was still stiff with anger.

His hand clenched at the memory of his fingers against her silken skin. `Shahkara, I didn't mean to—'

A brief drumroll drew the attention of everyone in the room to `centre stage' where the president of Laronte stood on a podium, hushing the enthusiastic applause.

Max's jaw clenched. Even without bodyguards to hint at his importance, or prominent business cronies to showcase his standing, Liam McCalden emanated a presence that too many believed was one of integrity. From his handsome face and perfect physique, perfectly suited in Armani, to the deliberately-distinguished touch of grey in his dark hair, his father was all clichés and misdirection. The man spent as much time cultivating his image as he did heading his global conglomerate.

Max turned away, hoping he wouldn't be recognised in the crowd as his father spoke glowingly of Laronte's dedication to both commerce and community. Tonight's ball was a fundraiser for the so-called McCalden Benevolent Fund.

That was laughable. Max knew the charity was, at best, a public relations campaign, but mostly pure tax evasion. He was tempted to join the protesters out the front of his house.

He glanced at Shahkara, trying to communicate his apology with an anxious face and beseeching eyes, but she had moved away and was avoiding his gaze. He wondered if her regal air, that arrogant but enticing tilt to her body, came naturally.

As his father listed Laronte's many achievements, he stepped closer to her, his lips almost grazing her earlobe, as he whispered, `Please. I'm sorry.'

`How dare you touch my possessions without permission!' Her curt reply was audible only to him.

`But I—'

`You would have no complaint if I rifled through your pockets and picked up your personal effects?'

`Actually, no.'

`You lack breeding!'

`I do. Perhaps you could teach me to be more refined. Like you.'

Her face softened. She ignored him for ten seconds, then turned her head. `Your pleading is undignified.'

Warmth filled him. `But you like me.'

`You are not without appeal.' She glanced towards the podium. `Is this verbose man your father?'

`However did you guess?'

Hushed but excited whispers stirred the crowd before they broke into applause.

`Is the speech over? Everyone appears happy.'

`Oh, yeah. I suspect Laronte's shares just doubled, or maybe tripled. Dad just announced the discovery of a flexible superconductor that can run at Antarctic temperatures.'

`Is that good?'

Max nodded. `Yes, it's been a long time coming, and it's like the holy grail, the really big prize, for this generation's scientists. The discovery is key to the world's future electricity needs. It's one small step away from fusion and flying cars, or so they say.'

`I see,' Shahkara said, though she clearly didn't.

Max's throat tightened as fawning journalists converged on his father, as he descended from the podium. `Let's get out of here.'

`Do you not wish to converse with your father?'

Max glanced at the socialites also milling by the stage.

`He's busy.' As always.

Besides they'd spent enough time here to be seen and back up their alibi. The sooner they left, the sooner he could breathe again. He'd almost prefer to face a Taloner than his father's always-disappointed jibes. He turned to leave a second too late and stiffened as he heard his other name being called.

Chatter and laughter died. Max turned. Journalists and guests stepped away, allowing a clear path between father and son. A lady approached Liam McCalden, but he cut her off. `Please excuse me, I haven't seen my son all week.'

All month. Sweat greased his palms as his father strode towards him.

`You came, Hugh.' Liam's smile failed to reach his eyes. He lowered his voice: `Nothing on television tonight then?'

`You wanted me here, Dad. Or am I just what the cat dragged in? Again.' Max noticed Shahkara's puzzled expression and then noticed the drink waiter.

Champagne! Ignoring his new friend's wilting look, he accepted a glass and downed the drink in a mouthful. The bubbly tingled his throat before it hit his stomach, easing his tension.

`Nice to see you're demonstrating restraint, son.' His father gestured them towards an empty corner of the ballroom where he could taunt Max without risking eavesdroppers: `I see you brought a friend. How delightful! But without my permission.'

`This is my home, too, Dad.'

`Was, before you left. You can't have two addresses, Hugh. But you may return home any time. And the sooner, the better.'

Better for whom? `Please stop calling me that. You know I don't like it.'

`It is your given name, stamped on your birth certificate.'

`Another of your superb choices. Well, I guess this wasn't worth the trip. Time to go.'

`Don't be ridiculous, Hugh. I don't see enough of you as it is, and I'm keen to know the company you're keeping.' He glanced pointedly at Shahkara.

`Introductions? Or do they not teach any etiquette or common courtesy at that expensive private school still burning a hole in my bank account, despite you leaving home?'

Max really wanted to walk away. `Dad, this is Shahkara… Towers. We're at school together. Shahkara, this is my father, Liam McCalden.'

`Miss Towers,' he nodded. The emeralds in his signet ring glinted as he reached out a hand to her.

`Liam McCalden,' Shahkara nodded back, and encircled his father's fingers in an awkward I've-never-shaken-a-person's-hand-before clasp.

Oh, yes! Max so wanted to laugh.

`Have you known my son long?'

`Long enough,' she said.

`Then, for which of his bad parts didst thou first fall?'

Shahkara blinked. `I beg your pardon?'

`Really Dad? You have to mangle Shakespeare?'

`I merely wish to know, young lady, if you associate with Hugh for your amusement or his money. You must have a reason for keeping him company.'

`Your son is kind, sir, and helpful.'

`Kindness does not build empires. But he'll never need to lift a finger anyway, since I've already done it all for him. If only he showed the least bit of interest in being my heir, especially as he's no longer the back-up plan.'

`That's me: the ex-Plan B. Not all of us want empires, Dad.'

His father's eyes narrowed. `You're outspoken tonight. I'm not sure it suits you.'

`We were just about to leave. We have anywhere else to be.'

`Very amusing, Hugh. But please don't deprive me of your girlfriend's so-very eloquent company.'

`She's not my—'

`What do you think of the ball, Miss Towers?'

`It is an extravagant celebration. I commend you.'

He flashed her a smile. `The secret to a charity blast, Miss Towers, is to make it decadent. Costume parties are the vogue right now. Happening in all the best circles. I'm pleased you dressed for the occasion, though I can't guess your character.'

`I do not—'

`She's from Dr Who.'

`Oh. You share my son's love of science fiction? How marvellous.'

`I do not think you mean that, Liam McCalden,' said Shahkara, in complete innocence.

Max snorted. He couldn't help it.

`Hugh, where are your bodyguards?'

`I gave them the night off.'

`You are just brimming with bright ideas tonight. That one could get you killed.'

`I don't need the bodyguards.'

`I will not bury another son. Phone them. I want them close to you at all times.'

`Dad, I'm not a child any more.'

`Neither was your brother.'

`Then quit blaming me for his death!' Max's outburst drew glances from the nearest group of socialites. He smiled at them.

His father's brow tightened. `At least your brother had the decency to respect the McCalden name. My money pays for your lifestyle.'

Max's chest ached. `Lifestyle? I'm still in school!'

`Yes, but unless you apply yourself you won't get much further.'

`Maybe you could just start believing in me, then.'

`Two way street, Hugh. Give me a reason to. But I'm fast losing the patience to pander to you.' His father's supercilious tone was almost physical.

`When you move back home, we'll discuss this further and we'll look at universities. Have a lovely night, Miss Towers. Hugh.' Liam McCalden walked away.

And that was why Max loathed talking to his father. He loosened his fists as the Laronte president strode towards a cluster of admirers.

`Why does he call you Hugh?'

`That's what he named me.'

`You introduced yourself to me as Max.'

`That's what my friends call me. It's my nickname from school, short for McCalden. I'm just not Hugh any more.'

`Shhh!'

`But—'

`Silence!'

Max blinked.

She was tilting her head to one side, as if listening to the ground. `I heard something.'

`We're at a party. You're going to hear a lot of something.'

`This is different.' She remained quiet for a few minutes, concentrating on the floor, ignoring everything going on around them. Finally she said, `Where can we talk?'

`We're heading home. How about the car?'

`No. Is there a private room in this house, where others will not hear?'

`The library, I suppose.'

`Do you wish to find out more about the Taloners and perhaps why your bodyguard attacked you?'

`Well, yeah! This way.' He guided her past idle groups of people and wandering guests until they left the party noise behind and passed through the pretentious arched entrance of the huge McCalden library.

One of his schoolmates had joked this room was bigger than his whole house. Low lights revealed thousands of very expensive mostly-unread books lining the floor to very-high ceiling shelves, and five head-high aisles.

To the right, French doors led out on to a huge balcony, and at the far end to the left, the door to his father's study was closed to the world as always, and monitored by a security camera with no microphone.

`Okay.' Max downed the rest of his champagne. `We're alone. Spill.'

`I heard two people shouting at each other in the room below your ballroom.'

`You mean the front courtyard?'

`No, in the room beneath the mansion.'

`There's nothing under the ballroom except foundations.'

`You are wrong, Max. I have very keen hearing. I heard but fragments of what they were saying and the word Taloner was mentioned more than once.' She glanced around. `I do not trust this room. Someone may be lurking.'

`How about the balcony? We can see if anyone's nearby.'

`Are you sure?'

`You wanted private. And I promise not to fall off this one.' He set his second now-empty glass on an oak shelf and pulled her towards the open doors.

`Good. I refuse to keep rescuing you.'

`Famous last words.' His pulse thudded as he led her on to the balcony. Was it really only a few hours since he'd been drowning his spirits with spirits at Darryn's place? Such a short time in Shahkara's company. Blood pounded his head as the cool summer breeze played with her loosened hair. `Is it too cold for you?'

`No, I am accustomed to a far colder climate.' Her fingers rubbed at the stiff muscles at the back of her neck and he wished he could ease away her tension. `What is that building over there?' She pointed to the large complex separated from the McCalden estate by a quarter hectare of bushland and razor wire fence.

`Laronte Headquarters. Dad likes all his concerns close to home.' Just like his children. `Tell me what you heard.'

`I only heard them because their voices were raised. They were arguing about a breeding program for Taloners. Do you think the coven is cultivating humans to feed themselves?'

`Oh, that's disgusting. But I suppose it'd give them a source of hearts without the public knowing.' Horror swept through him. Something in his gut had made him think this social event would yield clues, but he'd thought it'd relate to Jack, not some creepy breeding program.

`Do you wish to investigate this room?'

Max shrugged. `This is my house, Shahkara. It's still sinking in that there's a room I don't know about. I'm not sure what we do about it without getting caught.'

`Your father must know.'

`Ah, yes. Which means he must also know what's going on there. So I can't just ask him.'

`Why not?'

`Again, because he might be in on it. Which means he might've known about Jack being a Taloner too.' Max wasn't at all shocked that his father might be helping an evil demon group. Not if there was a profit in it. But not being shocked didn't mean he wasn't still disappointed.

`I'm sorry Dad was rude to you. He's almost always difficult.'

`Your father may be collaborating with murderous Taloners and yet you apologise for how he spoke to me?'

Max shrugged again. Perhaps he could only deal with the small things. Like how, right now, he'd love to kiss the girl in front of him.

`Oh no, Max. The moon!'

`Yes? There it is,' he said. Who cared about a giant rock in the sky? Except of course for how, as it emerged from a sea of clouds, it cast a sensual half-light across Shahkara's face. He yearned to sweep those errant tendrils of hair away from her velvet-soft cheek, tuck them behind her ear and kiss her lobe. If he'd had more champagne, he might've had the courage. Maybe. `The view is probably different from Earth.'

`No, it should be a new moon tonight.'

A waning crescent shone down upon them. `On your world, maybe.' He pulled his phone from his pocket. `Today's Sunday. Our new moon's not until Wednesday.'

`That can't be!'

`Sorry. But we can't change our lunar cycle to suit visitors.'

Eyes wide and dark, Shhkara took a deep unsteady breath. `This ruins everything. I had a full month to find the Elnara. Now I have three days!'

`Are you kidding me? What's the moon got to do with it?'

`I can only travel between Earth and Gorias through the Twilight Mists of a new moon, when the fabric between our worlds is at its thinnest. The Keeper lent me ancient magic to open the mists, but it will not last more than a month. So I have three days to find the lantern.'

`Can't you return to your kingdom on Wednesday and just get him to re-cast the spell and then send you back again?'

`Sending me to your world has cost the Keeper enormous power. If I return without the Elnara, he may not have the strength to bring me back again.'

`How hard is it to find this death lantern? I could help. Where is it?'

`No, I must find it by myself.'

`In three days? You have to be joking. You have no licence and you don't even know the city. Is the lantern even in Brisbane?'

Her fingers tugged at the cord at her neck. `You are not a warrior, Max, you would slow me down if you accompanied me.'

`You'll be slower trying to do it on your own.'

The pendant. She was still fiddling with it. `That thing holds the key to the Elnara's location, doesn't it?'

`Of course not!'

`Uh-uh. You are not a good liar, Shahkara. Let me guess, the pendant is a magical relic with an ancient map or writings on the back.'

`Shush!' Her lips compressed. `No one must know.'

`I won't say a word.'

Her gaze reflected disbelief.

`I promise.'

She sighed. `It is a compass key.' She lifted the dragon pendant from behind her cuirass and passed it to him after some hesitation. The heart-shaped bow, edged by miniature dragon claws and the defiant spines of its tail, revealed a silver filigree needle nudging south-south-west. The clockface was void of numerals, yet something rippled through it.

Raw power thrummed against his fingers as he turned it over. No map. No ancient inscriptions. Only the intricate scales of a dragon.

`How does this help you?'

`It is pure magic, crafted by Danu. The needle points to the Elnara.' She tugged the key from his hand, looped the cord over her neck and returned the dragon to the hidden hollow between her breasts. `I know the direction, even if I do not know the distance.'

`But your journey could take months.'

`No, I am close to the Elnara. It is most certainly on this continent. Your kingdom must be no more than two days' travel in breadth if we take a car?'

`My kingdom? This continent? Shah, you have no idea.' He escorted her back into the library and asked her to wait near a lamplit table while he went in search of an atlas. He returned with a mammoth leather-bound edition which he laid on the table in front of her.

`This is a book of maps, and this is a map of Australia.'

Shahkara peered at the page.

`We are here,' Max pointed to Brisbane, then trailed his finger south. `This is Coffs Harbour, six hours away in a car. This is Melbourne, twenty-one hours away.'

`Then I have not a minute to lose. I must depart immediately.'

`Uh-uh! We, not you. I know how to help you get there faster, by triangulating the Elnara's position.'

He reached for a pencil and drew a large X over Brisbane. `The compass says the Elnara is somewhere in this direction,' he drew a line south-south-west from Brisbane to Australia's south coast.

`So, if we drive south-west,' he sketched another line from Brisbane, `the compass needle should slowly change direction until we can pin-point the Elnara along this third line heading south-east.' He completed a sample triangle and circled the southern intersection point. `See?'

`But that means we have to travel twice as far.'

`Not if our westward journey is shorter than our southern route. Besides, we can fly south once we have the coordinates.'

`Fly? How?'

`In an aeroplane, flying machine, that goes faster than a car.'

`Why not just fly south straight away?'

`Aeroplanes can only take off and land at certain places, so we'd need to know where we're going or we could run out of fuel and crash out of the sky.'

`Your strategy has merit. Are you willing to accompany me? Can we leave immediately?'

`We've got a couple of hours to kill until midnight. We could drive west now to see if triangulation is our best bet. If the compass needle turns during that time, we won't need a plane and can do it all by road. I'll be back in a sec. I'll just put the atlas away.'

Max bit his lip as he strode back down the aisle to the reference section. Leaving Shahkara's side for even a few minutes seemed like an eternity.

What was happening to him? In less than a day, she'd given his empty life purpose and he wanted to help her more than anything. Ever.

As he rounded the softly-lit row of books and slid the atlas back in its nook, he froze at the sound of another voice in the library.

`All alone are you, Miss Towers? That's so typical of Hugh.'

Great. What was his father up to now?