Half Lost (25 page)

Greatorex and three trainees join me and we clear out the rooms, checking the interlinking passages. And we check as we go that the Hunters we kill really are dead. It takes time until we're satisfied that the ground floor is clear. Two of the trainees have been hit, one killed and one wounded. I tell Greatorex that they should keep back and let me lead.

The first floor is easier. It's a smaller area and the layout is simple. I move through it room by room and by the end of it another ten Hunters are dead. Greatorex and the trainees check the bodies and all the hiding places. I still haven't seen Gabriel but I try not to think about that. I'm in the furthest room when I hear more shooting and I head back along the corridor and catch a glimpse of three Hunters in a room and one of them sees me too.

Jessica!

She shouts at me and points her gun. “You!”

Jessica shoots and I send lightning to her but she's gone. These rooms are all linked and I run along the corridor to
the next room expecting to see her but there's no one there. Is there another exit we don't know about?

More shots, and I run back to the corridor. Another of our trainees lies on the floor, close to the stairs. Greatorex and the others have taken cover in the next room.

From up the stairs I hear a Hunter shouting, “Keep back. Don't come after us or more of you will die. We have hostages.”

And again I wonder where Gabriel is but I know I shouldn't think about that now.

I tell Greatorex, “I have to go up there.”

“They can't hurt you but they can hurt the hostages.”

“You have a better idea?”

She shakes her head.

“I think there's some of them in these rooms too,” I tell her. “Jessica and two others. Check them out.”

I go invisible and move up the stairs.

There's a group of Hunters just inside the first room. I can't see how many but they have their hostage standing in the doorway. It's not Gabriel. It's Adele. There are two guns pointed at her head and there's a thin rope round her neck. I see the skin on her neck is shiny and metallic where the rope is digging in.

But even invisible I can't rescue her without her being shot.

I need to talk to them.

I become visible and the shooting and shouting starts
again but I stay standing at the top of the stairs and wait. Eventually the shooting stops and it's quiet again.

I shout at them, “You can't hurt me. The building is full of Alliance soldiers. Your best option is to surrender. If you kill the hostage I'll kill you all. The only person who will live through this will be me.”

I feel a bullet tap my forehead and another my chest. “Soul's dead, and Wallend. I've destroyed the witch's bottles so you can't go invisible, but I guess you've worked that out already. Now you need to accept that you've lost.”

Another bullet taps my forehead.

“That's annoying but it's never going to hurt me. Surrender. Now. Let the hostage go.”

“We're not surrendering. We're leaving. Let us go and we won't kill this one or the other one. You attack us, any of us, and they die.”

And they push the other hostage to the front with Adele. He's dressed in Hunter black, but he looks like himself now, his hair hanging forward, part covering his face, blood from his ear running down his cheek. A gun is rammed up hard against the side of his head and a noose of thin rope is round his neck. The Hunter behind him is half holding him up. He looks at me and I know I'll do anything to get him free. If it's him.

“Speak to me, Gabriel,” I say. “Prove it's you.”

He leans back against the Hunter behind him and looks at me and his voice is choked and I can hardly hear him as
he says, “You've been away a long time. Were you lost?” He sounds lost himself, half strangled and fighting to stay conscious.

“Wounded, not lost,” I tell him, but I do feel lost.

One of the Hunters shouts, “We're going through a cut. Try anything, hurt any one of us, and we'll shoot the hostages. We're all going through the cut and we're taking the hostages. Follow and we'll kill them.”

The Hunters move into the corridor; there's eight of them. They keep the hostages closest to me as they back away.

And I'm helpless to do anything. The gun is hard against Gabriel's skull. A jolt on the Hunter's finger and he'll be dead. I need to stop time. Then I can pick the Hunters off safely.

I have to concentrate. Rub my hands in a circle, concentrate on stillness, but all I see is Gabriel and the gun against his head. And the Hunters are shouting, “He's doing something! What's he doing?” And now they've backed into the last room on the corridor and I can't concentrate enough to stop time but I can go invisible and race along the corridor. They're in the room, at the far wall covered in bookshelves. And already two of the Hunters are disappearing through the cut. I try again to concentrate, rub my hands and think of stillness, but my eyes are on the Hunters too. Another pair of Hunters at the rear go through the cut. There's just two Hunters: one holding Gabriel and one holding Adele.

I rub my hands. Think of stillness, stillness. Calm, breathe out and hold. But it's not working. I know I'm not concentrating. I can't do it like this.

The Hunter holding Gabriel is reaching down for the cut. I have to risk it. I'm invisible and I run at the Hunter and snap her gun up and away from Gabriel. The gun goes off and I stab the Hunter in the neck with the Fairborn while shooting lightning at the one who has hold of Adele. Gabriel has collapsed to the floor. He's alive. I cut the rope round his neck and he gasps with relief. I look over to Adele. She's unconscious and so is the Hunter who held her.

Gabriel's neck is red raw from the rope. “You OK?” I ask him.

“Shot,” he says.

“What?” I rip open his jacket. There's blood on his shirt. “Can you heal?” I ask him.

“I'm trying.”

“Greatorex, I need Arran!” I shout. I'm not sure she can hear me but I don't want to leave Gabriel for a second. “Greatorex!” I shout again. “Get Arran!” I turn back to Gabriel and peel open his shirt. There's a lot of blood but the wound doesn't look so bad. It's a long but shallow cut along his side, but the bullet is not in him.

“You'll be OK. It's a flesh wound. The bullet's not in you. Just a bit of Hunter poison.”

“So I'll live?”

“Definitely.” And I'm shaking with relief. He still needs help, but the poison won't kill him.

“Greatorex! Get Arran up here! Now!” I shout again at the top of my voice.

There's no reply. I listen and am about to shout again when I hear more shooting from down the corridor.

Adele is getting up now, though she's staggering a little. The shooting has stopped.

Gabriel tries to sit up. He says, “I'm not that bad.”

I tell him, “Adele can go and find Arran in a minute. Just lie back. If Greatorex doesn't come I'll send her.”

“Did you shout for me?” It's Arran. I have my back to the doorway and turn as he comes to us. His eyes meet mine and they're full of concern but then I realize he's wearing Hunter black and he pulls his hand out from behind his back and moving behind Adele he shoots at me.

Jessica!

I send lightning at Jessica but Adele is in the way. Adele turns and shoots as she rolls to the left. Two more Hunters run into the room, shooting and sprinting, going for the cut. I'm trying to cover Gabriel and send out lightning to Jessica again. She's fallen to the floor. As one of the other Hunters goes through the cut, another—the last one—grabs her boot and they both disappear. Jessica is on the ground and I send more lightning at her but still she shoots at me. I feel pressure on my chest and I move to protect Gabriel as I send lightning back and she shoots again and I feel another tap on my shoulder, and another. Jessica is burning now, smoke coming from her clothes and her hair, and then her appearance changes from Arran to herself, and she's still.

Adele is standing now. She's OK.

“Nathan.” Gabriel says my name softly and I turn to him.

He's lying on the floor, looking up at me. His eyes meet mine but then I see that I haven't protected him at all. Blood is pouring out of him. Jessica's bullets have deflected off me and hit him in the chest. I'm calling for Arran, the real Arran, and telling Gabriel to heal. He has to heal until Arran can get here. If Arran hurries, Gabriel will be all right. And Gabriel's eyes are open and staring at me and I bend over him and tell him that he'll be all right and Arran will be here any second and he says, “I can't . . .” And I say that he can heal and he must do it and Arran will be here and I see his eyes are not focusing on me now and the blood is pooling around his stomach and I tell him he mustn't leave me, that I couldn't bear it and he knows that. And I interlock my fingers in his and hold them so tight but he doesn't hold me back. His eyes are open and there are still glints of gold spinning in them. Spinning slowly. And I'm shouting for Arran again, screaming for him, and then Arran's with us and Gabriel's chest is sopping with blood and Arran's saying he has to get the bullets out and I'm telling Gabriel that it won't be long and he'll be OK and Arran cuts into Gabriel's chest and digs his fingers in and Gabriel doesn't even flinch but the glints in his eyes move slower and I'm screaming at him not to dare die on me and I'm screaming louder and louder and Arran pulls out a bullet and cuts again and this time Gabriel makes a noise and it's barely
there and I know he's just said my name and he looks at me and the golden lights in his eyes twist slower and slower and Arran is saying he can't find the bullet and he thinks there's still another after that.

I have to stop time. If I can stop it, Arran can get the bullet out. I rub my hands and think of stillness but nothing happens and I know it's not working. I try again. Think of nothing, think of stillness. I've got to do this. I've got to be calm and do it. And I move my hands and think of stillness and then it's silent. All is still. But Arran is still too. I don't know how to stop him from falling under the spell and I don't know how to get the bullet out. And I look at Gabriel's eyes and there are two glints left in them, faint but there. And I tell him I love him and I need him and I hold him to me and kiss him but I know I can't keep time still for much longer so I kiss him once more and then time starts and Gabriel looks at me and the glints in his eyes fade until the last one disappears.

Diving off the Cliff

We're in Wales. Arran's with us too. He spends most of his time making potions and the rest of the time trying to make me drink them. They're to keep me calm and make me sleep, but all I want to do is be with Gabriel. When I'm with Gabriel I am calm and I don't need to sleep. Gabriel spends his time swimming and climbing and if I'm sleeping I can't be with him. Today it's sunny and I'm sitting in the sun on the grass by the small lake I told Gabriel about. Gabriel's swimming. He loves it here. It's a good place. Still not hot, but spring's arrived. We've been here two nights, Arran, me, and Gabriel. Arran sleeps in a tent. I've built a den like my father did, getting the brambles to grow up and around us. Me and Gabriel have a fire and some sheepskins. It's good. Not as poor as it looks, as my father said. I can make the brambles grow faster than ever now. I made the den in a few minutes. I know I can use all my father's Gifts easily if I want to, but I don't ever want to use the lightning again. Or even the flames. I light the fire with matches and take my time about it. Gabriel smiles at that. He always smiles.

I sit on the grass and watch Gabriel. There's a rock wall at the side of the lake and he climbs out of the water and
up the rock. He's showing off a bit, I think. I like watching him.

I keep my eyes on Gabriel and start to shiver. I put my hands in my pockets and feel a stone. I take it out: it's the white stone for Annalise.

After months of thinking about what I wanted to do to her, how I wanted to punish her, nothing was right. I know my father would have killed her but I think he would understand why I couldn't. I love him and loathe her but still I couldn't kill her.

Celia and Bob have got the truth from Clay and from Annalise. She wasn't ever a spy. Though they tried to use her, she refused. Clay found the Geneva apartment through a Half Blood called Oscar and a Hunter who can detect cuts and a bit of luck. Annalise had nothing to do with it.

Gabriel is almost at the top of the cliff. There's a small overhang that he loves climbing.

I take the white stone out of my pocket, pull my arm back and throw it as far as I can, watching it splash into the water.

Gabriel is at the top. He waves at me and I wave back. He peers over the edge and pretends he's lost his balance and is falling but then turns his fall into a beautiful dive into the water. Definitely showing off. I don't want to take my eyes off him. He's swimming back to the cliff and going to do it again I think.

Arran says, “Someone's coming.” But I can't think who it might be or what they'd want and I'm not sure if we
should run or get Gabriel or what. Arran moves close to me. “Don't panic. It's fine. I think it's Adele and someone else with her.” And he touches my arm and I look at him and then round behind me. There's a long view down into the valley and they're still a way off.

“It's Ledger,” I tell Arran, and I can't see anyone else apart from him and Adele.

By the time they get to us I'm breathing normally again and Gabriel is sitting near me.

Arran stands when they get close but I stay sitting with Gabriel. They talk but I don't bother to listen and then Ledger joins us on the grass. He looks the same as when I first met him: that same boy.

He says, “I'm sorry about Gabriel.”

And I shake my head because that's not right. I say, “That's not right.” And Arran is beside me again, shushing me and saying, “Try to keep calm, Nathan.”

“He always wants me to be calm,” I tell Ledger.

And I look to Gabriel but he's gone and I say, “Where's Gabriel gone?” And Arran gives me potion to drink and I don't want it so I pour it on the ground. I just want to find Gabriel but I know I have to keep calm or Arran will make me drink it again and I just get tired then and don't see Gabriel at all when I have the potion.

So I try to look normal and meet Arran's eyes.

Ledger says, “I wanted to see you again, Nathan. I've destroyed the bottle. I have your finger. I said I'd return it to you.”

And Arran says, “Good.”

And I try my best not to look around for Gabriel. But I have a feeling he's gone back for another swim. And Arran and Ledger keep talking about my finger. Then Adele says, “I've seen Celia. She's trying to get things in order. They're setting up a Truth and Reconciliation Council.”

Arran says that's a good thing, though I've no idea what it is.

“She says that there are a few Hunters still at large, but most of them have come under her control. She'll lead the Council until the new systems are running properly. Greatorex is leading the new Hunter Alliance. It'll be small and work as a police force like it was originally meant to. They're going to let Black Witches and Half Bloods join.”

Adele adds, “Celia suggests you move. She's found a place for Nathan. Wales isn't a good place for him to be. There are still some who might try to harm him. It's too easy to find him here.”

“We'll go,” Arran says. “Soon.”

Ledger kneels down close to me and says, “I came to see you, Nathan, to perhaps persuade you to come with me.”

I can't really think of anything to say. Of course I'm not going with him.

Arran says, “It's something to think about, Nathan.”

I don't want to think about it.

“Now isn't the time,” says Ledger. “I see that, but I wanted to tell you that you will always be welcome.”

Arran says, “Thank you.”

Ledger reaches out and holds my hand. His is cool. He says, “Nathan, if you need it, the earth will help.”

But I'm not listening anymore. I've spotted Gabriel back at the base of the cliff, climbing out of the water, and I know he's going to do another dive and it'll be beautiful.

* * *

We leave Wales the next day. We get a train to France and then somewhere else. Gabriel says we should visit Nesbitt in Australia and I tell Arran that and he takes my hand and says, “Gabriel's dead, Nathan. You have to accept that.” But that makes no sense to me at all. And Gabriel is sitting on the other side of me, stroking the back of my hand with his fingertips.