: Chapter 18

I don’t know how I got to this beach. I was watching nothing but my feet and somewhere along the line, tarmac turned to sand. Hendrix sits me down beneath a cliff face and picks up his phone which hasn’t stopped ringing since we ran away. He wanders off, no further than a few meters, and answers the call. I can’t focus on the words. He’s nothing more than a mumbling in the distance, despite still being close by. I look out at the waves rolling up the shore. I watch the seagulls fly above the water.

I feel numb.

Hendrix rests his hand on my shoulder and gives me a comforting squeeze.

‘You couldn’t have saved them without dying yourself. Or exposing what you are.’

‘Stop touching me,’ I whisper.

‘Listen. I know-’

‘I said… stop. Just stop touching me, Hendrix. It feels like acid on my skin just… stop.’ I brush him off. He steps away as I continue looking out to the water. My heart feels full of lead. My blood is running cold and adrenaline has my ears ringing. Shock prevents me from doing anything more than blinking and sitting still as a statue. I’m so lost in what I just saw, I don’t sense magic as it approaches. I don’t recognise or register voices. Only when Gabriel kneels down in front of me do I look away from the water and the first thing I see is the deep concern in his startling blue eyes. He brushes the hair from my face and rests his palm on my cheek. I take hold of it tightly with both of mine and kiss his knuckles again and again before sinking into his lap and burying my face in his neck. I’m so glad he’s here.

‘Gabriel, did you see? Did you see what they did?’

‘I saw. We all saw. You couldn’t have helped them, Beautiful. None of us could. Not without exposing what we are or compromising your safety,’ he says sweetly in my ear, his hand rubbing circles around my back.

I lift my head and look him in the eye. He goes to wipe my tears. But there are none to wipe dry. I have none to shed through this anger I’m feeling. Through this disappointment and disgust at what I just witnessed. He searches my eyes and whatever he sees seems to make him a little uneasy.

‘Talk to me,’ he says, holding my face with gentle hands. ‘What’s going on in that head?’

My eyes drift over his shoulder. ‘You know, this is the first time I’ve ever seen the ocean. I’ve never felt sand before today. I’ve never smelt the salt on a breeze or felt the spray of the waves on my face. I’ve read about the sea.’

‘I remember. You told me that seventy-percent of our planet is covered in water. That for every litre of seawater there is, there are thirty-five grams of salt. But that you’ve never once seen it with your own eyes.’

‘You remember me telling you that?’

‘Of course. At the tree lot. After you handed my arse to me and told me I was an idiot,’ he says, with an affectionate smile. There’s a slight disturbance over to the side as Grayson attempts to pass Hendrix and get to me. His eyes are on the ring sitting on my finger, but every attempt Grayson makes to get past, Hendrix stops him, telling him I need to have a minute to calm down. Gabriel guides my face back to him.

‘Ignore them. Talk to me. You still with me?’

‘I’m not going to give in to my Break.’ My words are firm and final. ‘I know now, more than ever, that I cannot let my Break take me. There’s enough evil in the world.’

‘Good. I’m very happy to hear that.’ But he still looks nervous.

‘One thing is for certain. Something has become crystal clear to me today.’

‘What’s that, Beautiful?’

I pull off the ring and toss it to Grayson who catches it. ‘Magic must return if we’re to survive. No way humans will let the Descendants live in peace if they find them. They’ve been brainwashed into thinking we’re less than vermin. Without magic they’re defenseless. Without magic… We’re all going to die.’

Grayson and I share a look of understanding. For the first time ever, I think we’re on the same page. I saw two strangers beaten and burnt to death for nothing more than dressing differently. He witnessed his family butchered for simply breathing.

We are hated. We are loathed. More than that, we are feared, which fuels their violence and need to destroy us or anything that may be close to magical in nature.

I turn back to Gabriel and rest my forehead against his.

‘We need to see this through,’ I tell him. ‘Never mind Grayson’s threats. We have to do the spell because it’s the right thing to do.’ With a deep sigh, I just let myself soak up his aura. The magic I sense from him surrounds me like a blanket of protection and much needed courage and comfort. ‘If I had to watch you die like that…’ I can’t finish the words. The idea is simply too much to comprehend.

‘You won’t. Of course you won’t.’

‘No,’ I tell him with certainty as I pull him into a hug. ‘I won’t.’

∞∞∞

There was no hanging around. We got into the cars and started the five-hour drive to London. We can’t risk the other ring being lost to another mob. Grayson didn’t insist on separating Gabriel and I this time. I think he saw that I needed him. At least until the blood stopped pumping through my body a million miles per hour and the shaking subsided. We’re sat in the back seat as Billy drives the car. Grayson and Hendrix are in a Bentley behind us and a few miles back is another car with three Nomads inside. Grayson sent the others back to protect the camp. The violence and cruelty we witnessed has shaken us all up a little. None of us are new to violence or death. But seeing it spread like that. Watching children kill children and laugh. That was something else entirely.

‘Lilly?’ Gabriel says softly beside me, ‘Are you hungry?’

‘No.’ I shift so I can rest my head on his shoulder. I have this need to be as close to him as possible. This compulsion to touch him. The magic I sense from him is more comforting than anything else I could have right now. It’s his soul. His essence. It loves me and wants to keep me safe, and right now, I need to feel that. Because I need to know that there is more to this world than hateful humans and wrathful Hunters. Psychotic witches who want to destroy me or drive me insane or own me.

I need to know that there is love.

And he holds me in his arms so relieved that I’m still here. Still alive and in one piece.

After an hour or so, I may still be refusing food but the cars need fuel, so we make a stop.

Gabriel uses the rest-room as I wait outside for him, basking in the sunshine. Grayson remains in the car with his hood up and his phone pressed constantly to his ear as Billy and Hendrix fill the cars with petrol. All three men watch me like a hawk as I observe the cars whizz past us on the motorway. Hendrix goes inside to pay and when he comes out he stops to hand me a packet of choc-chip cookies.

‘You should eat.’

‘I’m sorry I burnt you.’ I look at his arm. Under his jacket, I know his skin is red and blistered. ‘I just wanted to help them.’

‘I know. Forget it.’ He shrugs and looks out at the cars with a heavy sigh. ‘Humanity fucking sucks. They are all complete and utter shits. All they’re good for is eatin’.’

‘The couple they killed didn’t deserve what happened to them. They couldn’t have been any older than sixteen. They weren’t evil, Hendrix. They were probably just on a date. Going to the beach.’

‘So were the fuckers that walked past and let those hoodies murder ’em. Face it. Humans are weak. They get scared which means they get violent.’

‘I’ve seen witches do much worse.’ My eyes drift over to Grayson. ‘Much, much worse. How is he? Still in a foul mood?’

‘He’s okay. I talked him down. He won’t hurt ya or nothin’.’

‘Alright?’ Gabriel asks as he appears by my side. I fit perfectly into the crook of his arm. ‘We good to go, Hendrix?’

‘We’re good to go. Listen, I had a word with Grayson. About how we’re gonna get the ring without setting off all the alarms.’

‘And?’

‘Well, I simply suggested that it made sense for ya to come in with us. You can go to the security office and tell them to disarm it with your powers of persuasion, while Little Witch and I go fetch the ring.’

Gabriel contemplates the plan and nods. ‘Sounds good. Did Grayson agree?’

‘Grayson agreed, but he ain’t so happy about it. It’s the British Museum after all. Security’s gonna tight. We set the alarms off, we’ll be swamped with cops. Not the best thing right now. If a Hunter gets too close, they’ll sense ya with their mark. Best just go in and be as quiet as possible.’ As he turns away to head back to his car, he nods at me while keeping his focus on Gabriel. ‘She could do with some sleep. She had a nasty shock earlier and she’s gonna need her strength in case we come up against something in London.’

Hendrix turns and joins Grayson in the car.

‘I think he’s getting soft. Either that, or he’s got a thing for you,’ Gabriel teases.

‘Gross.’

‘C’mon. Let’s get going,’ he laughs, draping his arm over my shoulders.

∞∞∞

Several hours later, I’m standing with Hendrix and Gabriel at the base of the marble steps which lead up to the main entrance of the British Museum. Despite the fact that it’s due to close in an hour, there are still hundreds of people about. They sit on the steps eating sandwiches or take photographs of themselves with their thumbs up and tongues out, posing in front of this stunning, historical building. Grayson is sitting in the car which is parked a few minutes from here in an underground garage. Both Grayson and Gabriel’s faces are all over the news, as is the image of the burning museum back in Cornwall. They’ve been blamed for the fire. Another terror attack against humanity. Disgustingly, there is no mention of the yobs and the deaths of the young couple.

Gabriel is wearing a cap and a pair of dark sunglasses. Hendrix still has his shades on too.

I pull the collar of Gabriel’s leather jacket tighter around myself and breathe in his scent.

‘Ready?’ Gabriel asks, taking my hand.

‘Ready,’ Hendrix and I reply.

We all take a deep breath, and head up the steps together.

∞∞∞

‘Wow… Just… Wow.’ I walk across the marble floor, through the Great courtyard and look up at the glass roof in awe. ‘This place is incredible. Utterly incredible. And I’m not even near the exhibits yet.’

‘Hey, do you remember that documentary you made me watch a couple of weeks back?’ Gabriel asks. ‘About ancient Egypt?’

‘Yeah, why?’

‘Come look at this.’ Gabriel pulls me left. Hendrix follows behind. We walk through a doorway before Gabriel stops. My breath gets stuck in my throat as I stand, mouth open and eyes on stalks. I let out an actual squeal. A real, high pitched, dancing on the spot squeal.

‘That’s why,’ he grins.

My hands and nose press up against the glass.

‘It’s the Rosetta Stone!’ I gasp. ‘It’s Rosetta Stone! Gabriel… Gabriel! Look!’ I pull him closer and jab at the glass, like he can’t see the slab of rock right in front of his face. ‘It’s the Rosetta Stone!’

‘I see it,’ he laughs. ‘I see it. It’s stunning, huh?’

‘It’s incredible. I never thought… In my wildest dreams… Wow, the Rosetta Stone,’ I say softly under my breath.

‘It’s a rock,’ Hendrix mumbles impatiently.

‘A rock?!’ I hiss. ‘Goddamn heathen! This stone… those engravings… they made reading ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs possible! Without it, a whole civilization would still be shrouded in mystery.’

‘You wanna fuck it? Come on. Let’s find-’

‘Beautiful?’ Gabriel takes my shoulders and leans into my ear. ‘Look around you.’ He steps back. I think my heart explodes with wonderment as I take in the rest of this majestic room. My feet carry me towards the stone bust of Pharaoh Ramesses. Past enormous statues of the Gods Ra, Osiris and Horus. Past tablets carved with prayers. Along the Pink Sphinxes and then through to the Persian exhibit, then onto ancient Rome. I’m lost in history. In beauty. In a part of the world I never thought I’d see. The world long gone but still so present. Everyone else who marvels at these artifacts are just as fascinated by it all as me. Gabriel stands by my side and lets me talk his ear off. He watches my enthusiasm and just beams at how excited I am as I tell him everything I know about the artifacts in front of us. I learnt about so many of them in the books back at Harry’s house. I never thought for a second I’d see any of them with my own eyes. I sink into his chest and our arms fold around each other as we look at the mummy of Katebet.

Hendrix is starring at the mummy with his arms folded. ‘Hey, Lilly?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Ya know about this stuff. Did they pull the brains out through the nose when they made a mummy?’ He leans in to the plaque and carries on reading. ‘That’s what it says here. Is it true?’

‘Yeah. They did.’

‘Wow. Those bastards were crazy,’ he says, fascinated. ‘With red-hot pokers… Damn.’

‘They were dead when they did it, to be fair.’

‘They hoped.’ Hendrix looks at me with a grin. ‘Did ya know, a few hundred years ago, in a town in Somerset, the graveyards started to get full, so they started digging up graves and storing the old bones in a bone-house so they could re-use the graves for fresh corpses?’

‘Really?’ I ask. ‘That’s gross!’

He nods. ‘That’s not the gross part. One in thirty of the coffins had scratch marks on the inside. Turns out, the poor bastards were being buried alive by accident. So, they started burying people with string tied to their wrists. The string was fed up to the surface and attached to a little bell. Some bloke would sit in the graveyard all night to listen for a bell so they could be dug back up.’

‘No way.’ I look at Gabriel. ‘Is that true?’

‘Where do you think the phrase Graveyard shift came from?’ Gabriel teases.

‘Or dead ringer?’ Hendrix laughs.

I look between them and have no idea if they’re lying or not.

Then, an announcement over the PA system declaring that the museum will close in half an hour, throws us back into reality.

‘We need to find the ring,’ I moan.

‘It’s in the Jewelry of Elizabeth exhibit,’ Gabriel says. ‘You two head up there. I’ll meet up with you after you get it.’

‘Where are you going?’

He pecks my cheek. ‘To ask the security guard very nicely to turn off all the alarms so you can get it without them going off. Give me ten minutes and it will be safe to grab the ring without alerting the authorities.’ He glances at Hendrix who checks his watch.

‘Ten minutes.’ Hendrix nods. ‘Got it. We’ll meet you back at the main entrance after.’

‘You look after my girl, Hendrix.’

‘With my life,’ he replies, taking my elbow.

‘Love you,’ Gabriel tells me.

‘Love you more.’

After a kiss on my forehead, he says, ‘Impossible. See you in a few.’

‘Come on,’ Hendrix says, heading towards the stairs and guiding me along with him. ‘Let’s go find the ring.’

We head on up and pass the tourists as they prepare to leave. Hendrix still has on his dark sunglasses and keeps his head down, leaving me to look all around me as we walk. We reach the first floor and find the next flight of stairs. Up we go. It’s obvious that the less popular exhibits are kept up here. Quieter and quieter it becomes. As we find the final flight of stairs and start to climb, I feel something. I keep my feet going and focus on the odd sensation that is getting stronger and stronger the further on we walk.

I think… Is it magic?

I know what magic feels like. I know the sensation that being close to a witch creates with my Sensativa. But this is something else.

It’s power. Complete power. Magic without emotion or agenda. There’s no feeling of love or protection like I feel from Gabriel. Or hatred and destruction like Theo.

We reach the third floor. I walk ahead and lead us to the right. With every step, the sensation gets stronger. It’s like it’s calling me closer and closer. We walk through the scroll room. Under the archway that leads to the Italian art exhibit and across the room to where there is a single glass door in the corner. I rest my hand on the handle, push it open and head inside.

The room is small and windowless. Unlike the house back in Cornwall, this place is cold and almost sterile. The walls are all a brilliant white with bright silver lamps placed in lines across the ceiling, casting everything in an almost painful fluorescent glow. The exhibits are encased, in precise lines, behind thick glass. It’s completely lacking in any character. But the feeling in this room is everything. Everything!

I start to walk across the room towards the stand-alone case ahead of me. My fingers flex by my side as I feel the air vibrate around me. The room is silent. It’s only us in here and when I finally reach the case, I know, without question, that the unimposing little ring with a red stone and a seven-pointed star set in the middle, placed amongst twelve others of similar size and style, is the real deal.

It’s Rebecca Hooper’s ring. I can feel magic emanating from it. We might as well take the other one and toss it in the bin.

A soft-spoken voice carries over the PA system, informing us that the museum doors will close in fifteen minutes. Hendrix watches the second-hand tick on his watch.

‘Alright then. Been ten minutes. Lover-boy should have compelled the security guard to disable the alarm.’ Hendrix punches through the glass. A shrill siren starts to blast. I clamp my hands over my ears to stop them from hurting.

Hendrix and I share a worried look.

‘Well, that can’t be good,’ he mutters, stowing the ring in his pocket.

‘We need to find Gabriel! Something’s gone wrong!’

‘Looks that way.

C’mon.’ He takes my arm. ‘We need to find him and fast. The shit is really about to hit the fan.’

As we turn to leave, I see an unexpected but familiar face standing in the doorway.

‘Hello,’ she greets cheerfully, giving a little wave. It’s the owner of the oddity museum back in Cornwall. She’s no longer in her odd and bright wardrobe, but dressed in black combat gear.

‘What the hell are you doing here?’ I call over the alarms, filling with panic and worry for Gabriel.

Still smiling, she pulls out a gun and points it at me. ‘I’m here to kill you of course, witch-scum!’

And then, she pulls the trigger.