Alex Verus Novels, Books 1-4 (9780698175952) (59 page)

A man walked towards me. I stayed leaning against the corner and didn’t raise my head. The footsteps stopped a few feet away. “Verus,” a familiar voice said.

I lifted my eyes. “Garrick.”

Garrick was wearing the same body armour I’d seem him in three nights ago, along with enough guns to star in a production of
The Matrix
. Behind him a steady stream of armed men piled out of the vans. “So I guess this answers the question of who you’re working for,” I said.

“For now.” Garrick holstered the same compact-looking assault rifle I’d seen him carry before. “What’s the layout?”

“Warehouse, single storey. Two access routes, through the industrial park at the front or a back entrance. Internal map’s here.” I handed Garrick a paper I’d sketched while waiting. “No outside defences, didn’t get a look at the interior.”

“It’s a start. Still want to take point?”

“I think I’ll leave this one to you guys.”

“And here I thought you had something to prove.”

I just shrugged. When he saw he wasn’t going to get a rise out of me, Garrick moved away.

Belthas had disembarked from the end of the convoy and was speaking to Meredith. I walked over and Belthas turned to face me. “Ah, Verus. Well done.”

“Don’t break out the champagne yet,” I said. “They were in the warehouse half an hour ago. Can’t guarantee they’re still there.”

“Nevertheless, your speed is impressive.” Belthas looked like a ghost in the darkness, thin and pale. “Let’s make sure it’s not wasted.”

Meredith was watching the men. I followed her gaze to see that Garrick had grouped them into a loose circle and was issuing orders. They had a dangerous look, more so than usual for Council security, but they weren’t carrying any magic. “No other mages?”

Belthas raised an eyebrow. “Are you volunteering?”

“I’m not a battle-mage.”

“Yes, you mentioned.” Belthas smiled slightly. “If you’ll excuse me.” He walked towards Garrick and the men, who fell silent at his approach. He issued some quick orders and the men began to take out submachine guns, checking the weapons and loading ammunition. They’d stopped talking and the only sound was the clack of metal. There was a feeling of tension in the air.

I looked at Meredith. “I’m guessing you don’t want to join in.”

Meredith shook her head. “Is there somewhere safe?”

“Come with me.”

T
he industrial park was big and—in theory—locked up. But between the two of us, it didn’t take long to find a building with a good view and get inside.

By the time we reached the top floor, Belthas’s men were moving into position. The building we were occupying overlooked the south and east sides of Cinder and Deleo’s warehouse, and beneath us I could see dark shapes slipping from
shadow to shadow, moving to encircle the warehouse. Although the building we were in was sealed, it wasn’t heated and I shivered as I stood by the window and looked down into the darkness. In less than five minutes Rachel and Cinder were about to get one hell of a nasty surprise, and for once I wasn’t going to be on the receiving end. It was an odd feeling.

I took out a small black headset, examined it briefly, then clicked a switch. A red light flashed and there was a brief hiss of static, quickly damped. Meredith looked at me in surprise. “Did Belthas give you a radio?”

“Not exactly.” I clicked through the channels until I found the right one, typed a three-digit code, then settled down to wait.

A voice spoke through the radio link. “North entrance in sight.”

Garrick’s voice answered. “Hold position. Wait for the scan.”

A hiss, silence, then Garrick again. “External clear. Move to breach.”

“Moving.”

“Look,” Meredith said quietly, pointing. I followed her finger and saw shadows closing on the warehouse, converging on the doors.

The radio spoke again. “Alpha team at north entrance.”

“Bravo team, south entrance.”

“Setting charges.”

A silence, then Garrick’s voice. “Alpha team, charges ready. Bravo, what’s your status?”

“This is Bravo, charges set.”

“Copy that. All teams check in.”

“Alpha team standing by.”

“Bravo team standing by.”

“Charlie team standing by.”

Garrick spoke again. “Weapons free. We are weapons free.” His voice was calm. “Breach on my mark. Five … four … three …”

Meredith was staring down at the shadows at the south end of the warehouse. I put my hand to her head and gently turned her face away. “Cover your eyes.”

“Two … one …
mark!
”

I closed my eyes just as the charges detonated and saw the white flash even through my eyelids. The roar came a fraction of a second later, and I opened my eyes to see a cloud of dust swirling about what had been the south door. Shadowy figures moved through the opening, lights flickering, searching for targets.

The radio crackled. “South clear.”

“Contact north!”

I heard the stammer of three-round bursts:
ratatat, ratatat
. An instant later sullen red light flickered from the windows and there was a piercing scream.

“Man down!”

“—hit, hit, we—”

More gunfire, followed by a flat
boom
. “Taking fire, taking fire!”

“Bravo, tossing flashbangs, fire in the hole!”

The warehouse lit up with white flashes and two deafening bangs. The wounded man continued to scream as Garrick’s voice spoke over the radio. “Move up!”

Lights flashed again, blue flickering against red over the staccato of the gunfire. I could sense spells being thrown, full-strength battle-magic intended to cripple or kill. Voices spoke over the radio, shouting, giving orders, drowning each other out. There was a final roar and a blue flash, followed by an ominous silence.

“Cease fire, target is down, cease fire.”

Garrick’s voice. “Bravo, take the stairs. Alpha, secure our position.”

“Bravo, moving up.”

Through the walls, I felt the signature of a gate spell. “Movement!” someone called.

“Flash the room. Go, go, go!”

Another white flash and a bang, this one slightly muffled. More gunfire and the distant thump of something heavy. Then the gunfire stopped. The warehouse below was silent but for the distant patter of boots.

“Clear left.”

“Clear right. First floor clear.”

“Ground floor clear.”

“Bravo, report.” It was Garrick’s voice.

“We got—” There was a burst of static. “—went in.”

“Bravo, repeat.”

“Negative, negative. We hit him, he fell through.”

“Confirm status of Target Two.”

“Evac’d. He’s gone.”

“Target One’s breathing.”

“Confirm that,” Garrick said. “Lock the place down. Charlie team, you’re on medic duty.”

The radio traffic died away. The man who’d been wounded earlier started screaming less often, then went quiet. I realised I’d been holding my breath and let it out. Meredith was still tense and the two of us stayed there, watching and waiting.

I
nfantry combat doesn’t end with a bang or fanfare. It draws out into a long, tense silence as the ones still holding the field search to make sure the enemy’s gone. Only as the minutes tick by and the silence stretches out does the tension ease.

After fifteen minutes Belthas’s men began to emerge, making a sweep of the immediate area. Once they began looting the warehouse, I knew the battle was over. The vans drove into the industrial area, parking near the warehouse with their back doors opened and turned towards it, and a steady stream of men moved back and forth.

The wounded were brought out first. I suspected it was public relations on Belthas’s part rather than genuine
concern for the men but it made sense either way. Two were still walking, while the third was on a stretcher. I could see burns down his left side but he wasn’t moving.

Next came items. I couldn’t make out any pattern in the things Belthas’s men were taking from the warehouse and I suspected they were just grabbing anything that wasn’t nailed down. There were clothes, weapons, and papers. One thing in particular caught my eye: a set of spikes about the length of my hand. Light reflected off them with a flicker of purple but before I could get a close look they were stowed away.

And finally they brought out Rachel. She was on a stretcher, pale and unconscious in the artificial light. Garrick and two other men were guarding her as the stretcher was wheeled out and lowered behind the van. Rachel’s mask had been lost somewhere in the fighting and I could almost make out her features, her hair spread out like a fan on the pillow. I stood next to Meredith, looking down through the tall windows over the industrial park, watching the men bustling around Rachel’s still form as she was lifted into the van. The doors shut behind her with a
clang
.

No one else came out. Rachel had been captured but Cinder had escaped. I considered asking Belthas what had happened but decided against it. They were a lot of men with guns down there, and now that Rachel and Cinder were gone, they didn’t have any need to stay quiet. It wasn’t that I
expected
Belthas to have me shot just to tie off a loose end; I just didn’t see any reason to give him the opportunity. I caught a glimpse of Belthas getting into one of the vans next to Garrick and the three vans pulled out one after another. The growl of their engines grew louder as they passed our building, then softer, until they’d faded into silence.

M
eredith and I descended the building and left the industrial park by the front entrance. The security post was empty. We walked back to the station in silence.

Only when the glow of the railway station was in front of us did I speak. “Want to get some dinner?”

“I can’t,” Meredith said. “I need to sort out a new place to stay.”

I hesitated. “You can use my flat if—”

“Thanks,” Meredith said. “But I need to get some other things done as well.”

“Okay.”

There was the crunch of tyres on gravel and as I looked into the road I saw a taxi pulling up. The driver signalled through his window and Meredith waved at him before turning back to me. She gave me a quick hug, then pulled away. “Will you be okay getting back?”

“Uh, sure. What about—?”

“I’ll be fine. Thank you for everything.”

Meredith walked quickly to the taxi and slipped inside. It pulled away and I watched the red lights disappear into the distance. It turned a corner and vanished, and I was alone.

I took the train home. My flat was empty and I went to bed.

I
woke up early next morning, heart racing and breath quick. Another nightmare. I don’t get them as often now but when I do they’re just as bad. The sounds of the London morning drifted through the window. My flat was quiet.

There was a message on my phone from Belthas, congratulating me on the successful completion of the mission. I skimmed it and hit Close. I didn’t feel like talking to Belthas.

The next message was from Sonder; he’d started research on the monkey’s paw but was having trouble finding all the books he needed. I closed that too and looked to see if there was anything from Meredith or Luna. There wasn’t.