Save Aether (The Trinity Key Trilogy Book 3) (4 page)

Chapter Four

Julia

Julia paced across the small room. The chains around her wrists dragged along the floor. The muscles in her arms ached from scratching at a corner wall with the metal, trying to remove whatever the Elders, or True Followers, or whatever they called themselves, had coated them with. She hadn’t had any luck. The stuff was like solid tar. Theo’s door slammed shut.

Are you there?
She asked through their telepathic connection
.

Yeah, I’m back.

Valera chimed in.
What happened?

Nothing really. We just talked. I made a few sparks. Lawless says he wants to help us.

What does that mean?
Julia snapped. She didn’t trust anyone; let alone some random doctor she didn’t know.

He said he’s going to get us out of the cells, and I think we can trust him. He’s not with the True Followers. He wants the same thing we do – to release Danu. We can’t trust Slammy and the rest, so I say we see where this goes.

Julia slapped the wall. She didn’t want to just go along and wait. Sinking to the floor, she put her head between her hands. She’d never been in a position like this, and she didn’t like it. It made her feel weak.

With a click, the lock on her door disengaged, and a white robe appeared. Julia stood up, and he flinched. His reaction made her smile. At least, they knew she was dangerous. And, in return, it gave her a modicum of confidence. He picked up the chain as if it were attached to a viper and unlocked the cuffs from her wrists. She rubbed her chaffed skin.

“Dr. Lawless would like to see you,” he muttered.

My turn
, she said to the Theo and Valera.

Theo shouted,
Don’t do anything stupid, Julia. This may be our only way out.

You wound me, Theodora. Have a little faith
. Julia grinned.

“Well, by all means, my good man, lead the way,” she quipped to her escort.

The guard frowned, in what she supposed was confusion, and held the door open. She followed him down the hall, noting the seven other white robes who just happened to be standing around nearby. She tipped an imaginary top hat to them and smiled. They all seemed to become distracted by invisible tasks.

The guard took her into a ballroom, where Dr. Lawless stood up from a small table and held out a hand. She took it and gave it a solid shake. Dr. Lawless gestured toward the empty chair. Julia sat down and leaned back. Crossing a foot over her knee and her arms across her chest, she assessed the man. He was scrawny, and his slim, long fingers creeped her out.

“It’s good to see you again, Julia.”

She nodded, but kept quiet. The Academy had taught her to disarm her opponent through silent intimidation. An enemy ill-at-ease is easy to manipulate. He cleared his throat – a sign she was winning – and sat down.

“I’m here to assist you in developing your abilities and to guide you to the true path of Danu,” he droned. Once the guard left and closed the door, Dr. Lawless leaned forward and whispered, “I’m here to help you.”

“I know. Theo told me.”

His brows dropped, and his mouth popped open. His confusion delighted Julia. Clearly, Theo hadn’t mentioned their telepathy. Perhaps the expert of all things Danu wasn’t as smart as he thought.

“How? I just spoke with her,” he muttered.

“We have our ways.” She winked. “So, Lawly – can I call you Lawly? Good. What’s the plan?”

He sat back and scribbled in his notebook. Apparently he found something she said worth noting, but what? She tried to maintain her composure. When his hand stopped, he looked up at her and took a deep breath.

“First, I’d like to assess your abilities. After Professor Scrod is done archiving the artifacts acquired from
The Vault
, she’d like to discuss them with the three of you. I’ve been told there are some very interesting finds.”

Julia couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Slammy Magee had stolen the artifacts. “You have the artifacts here? Those belong to the Order… to my father. What right do you have—

“The artifacts are on their way here, yes. And I promise they will be treated with the utmost respect. Better that they come here and be studied than to remain unprotected in the human world.”

That was not the answer she wanted to hear, but fighting about the artifacts was futile. These people would do what they wanted, and there wasn’t anything Julia could do. Her abilities were pathetic. She drew in aether and chilled the air in the room. He pulled the collar of his jacket together and rubbed his fingers.

“Is it cold in here?”

“Not really.”

She grinned. Her powers might be weak, but not for long. She’d play their little game, and soon she’d be stronger than Theo and Valera put together.

He cupped his hands and breathed into them. “Oh, okay then, let’s get straight to it. Let’s focus on the flow of aether. Tell me how you reach out for it.”

“Well, Lawly, it’s just there.”

He scowled at the nickname and sighed, “In detail please.”

“I think about it and boom.” She snapped her fingers for effect. “It’s there.”

The doctor groaned, “Fine, fine. Gather it up, and I want you to focus on this pen.”

She did as she was told. The metallic taste filled her mouth, and she aimed at the quill in his hand. Even though she put all of her energy into it, the only thing she created were wispy snowflakes that floated from her hands and dropped onto the table. The doctor touched one of the flakes, melting it between his fingers.

“Ice, of course, that explains it.” He raised an eyebrow and tugged on his coat as if just now realizing why the temperature dropped.

He grumbled under his breath. Although, Julia’s performance was less than spectacular, she grinned. She enjoyed his frustration. A sly smile appeared on his face, and she grew suspicious.

“You seem to be inhibited.” He scribbled in his notebook. “It’s not surprising really.”

“What’s not?”

“Well, simply said, Theo’s powers are clearly more… advanced than yours.” He tapped his chin with the pen. “Perhaps it’s an intellectual variance?”

“Are you saying that she’s smarter than I am?”

He shrugged. The steely tang overwhelmed her tongue, and the room became a freezer. Once again, she lashed out at the target, producing more snow. Frustration gripped her, and each time she tried to create ice, she got weaker. This was unacceptable. Theo was not smarter than she. Julia was just too stressed.

“Stop, stop. You’re going to burn yourself out,” Dr. Lawless said.

“My inability to perform has nothing to do with my intellect. How is anyone supposed to work in these conditions?” She threw her arms wide. “I’ve been locked up in a tiny cell, without proper amenities or food.”

Yes, she was in a grand ballroom. Yes, the cuffs were gone. Yes, Lawly over there was treating her with
some
respect. Yet, she was being held against her will by strangers – the irony of it all. She’d have to remember to apologize to Valera… when it suited her.

“I apologize for the accommodations. I’ll speak with the True Follower’s council about it post haste. I’m sure we can come to a more amicable solution, although it may take some convincing. You girls are somewhat… unpredictable.”

“If you can get me out of the cell, and provide some fresh clothes and a bath, then I’m sure my abilities will progress much faster.”

She wasn’t expecting him to give in so easily. Not that she trusted him, but her resolve was slipping. She rubbed her palms on her pants, crossed her arms, and then dropped them to her lap. He scribbled another note and closed the book.

“I think we’ve done enough for today. The guard will return you to your cell. Hopefully, we’ll have you better situated soon.”

The guard ushered her back without ever touching her. She slunk to the ground in the gloom of her prison. A migraine rotted a hole through her skull, and all she wanted to do was rest. Within minutes, the voices started up in her head.

How’d it go?
Theo asked.

What if I’m next?
Valera interrupted.
What happened in there? Was it awful?

Valera, you’re giving me a headache. Please, shut up.
Julia snapped.
Everything is fine. Lawless
says
he’s going to help. We’ll see.

Julia closed her eyes and drifted. Once again, the image of Danu floated around her thoughts. Her voice called out for help. No matter how many times Julia pushed the dream away, it always returned.

I think… I think someone’s at my door,
Valera shrieked, waking Julia from her tormented doze.

Julia heard several voices outside the cells. One of them was Dr. Lawless. Her door opened.

“The True Follower’s council would like to speak with you.” Dr. Lawless poked his head into the dismal space. “And I am here to escort you.”

The guards were gone, although Julia suspected they were close by. She was glad to see Valera and Theo waiting in the hall. Dr. Lawless’ grin widened.

“There something… mystical about seeing all three of you together. It’s like the reincarnation of the sisters themselves. Shall we?” He waved an arm toward the courtroom.

Slammy was on his perch, as snobbish as ever. He eyed the girls from over his upturned nose. Julia automatically went to the middle, but Dr. Lawless cleared his throat and ushered her over to the spectators’ chairs. When she opened her mouth to speak. His finger went to his lips.

“Just be quiet and behave.” He winked, and then began, “Grand Elder, we humbly beg your pardon.”

Julia rolled her eyes, but kept her mouth shut. Lawly’s pageantry seemed to make Slammy extra portentous. He placed his hands on his belly and leaned back. His chair creaked under his weight.

“I’m listening.”

“After spending time with the girls and explaining the true path, they’ve decided to honor Danu and join the True Followers in our quest.”

What? Wait a second, I didn’t agree to this.

Just go with it, Julia.
Theo snapped back.

“Well, isn’t this a fortunate turn of events. I wasn’t sure these... children could be reasoned with.”

“Yes, fortunate indeed. As initiates of the True Followers, I ask that they be moved to the chambers tower. They will remain under my guidance of course.”

Slammy rubbed his chin with his over-stuffed sausage-like fingers.

“I will grant your request, if… they vow allegiance to me.”

Hell no
, Julia spat.
Let’s bust out of here and free Danu ourselves. We don’t need Dr. Lawless or anyone else.

We’re not actually going to swear fealty or anything. We need the help, especially you Julia. Keep the goal in mind.

Theo’s assertion that Julia needed help from the doctor unnerved her. Julia knew her skills were weak, but she could learn on her own.
Slammy turned on my grandmother. That’s her chair he’s crushing up there.

Valera chimed in,
I don’t know, Theo. This seems kind of… wrong.

He’ll pay for what he did to your grandma, Julia. But right now, we have to play his game. We can’t free Danu on our own.

Julia hated to admit it, but Theo was right. They didn’t know where Danu’s tomb was. They needed the artifacts and the Trinity Key, and they didn’t know where they were being kept They had little choice.

Julia sighed, “I swear allegiance to the True Followers.”

“I do too,” Theo and Valera said in unison.

Slammy Magee lifted his gavel and slammed it. Julia covered her ears. He needed serious psychological help for his gavel fetish.

“You are dismissed,” Slammy proclaimed. Before he left the room, he turned to the girls. “However, understand this – one misstep, and you’ll regret it.”

He lumbered from the room as if he were the king of Aether. Julia hated him, and she wasn’t so fond of the doctor either. Dr. Lawless bowed in front of the girls. He seemed awfully proud of himself. He may have gotten them out of the cells, but they were still captive. However, Julia
was
one step closer to getting out.