Page 41 of Skulk of Foxes
‘Can we talk about this later?’
I tossed my head. ‘I’d like to talk about it now.’
There was a loud rumble. I let out a small yelp and threw myself at Morgan. His arm wrapped round my waist and, flipping me over his shoulder fireman-style, he pulled me through the window and down the ladder.
We only just made it to the ground in time. A moment later, the house collapsed in on itself as if it were a punctured balloon.
Morgan ran, taking us both a safe distance away from the cloud of dust and debris. He carried me to other side of the street, which was now a mess of gnarled roots and fallen bricks. Blue lights from the fire engine flickered outside several houses as more residents were rescued. Then something hit Morgan and I was squashed between him and the wall.
‘Thank you! Thank you! You saved my children!’
‘You’re very welcome,’ I said, my voice muffled somewhere around Morgan’s arse.
He dropped me gently to the ground. I brushed myself down and turned. By the time I’d done so, Bertie and Jess’s mum was hugging Morgan tightly. She was no longer crying or shrieking or screaming, she was wrapping herself round him in abject gratitude.
‘If it wasn’t for you,’ she gasped, ‘they’d be dead.’
She pulled back and several other humans approached. ‘Well done, mate,’ said a burly man with a beard and what appeared to be dinosaur pyjamas. ‘I don’t know what shit is going down here but you’re a hero. Well done.’
I folded my arms and glared.I’dentered the damned house.I’dclambered across the roof.I’dalmost killed myself in the process. Morgan had borrowed a ladder, wandered up a few rungs and somehow become the arsebadgering superhero. Honestly. This was idiotic.
‘Yeah,’ I said with full-blown sarcasm. ‘Go you.’
Several of the neighbours shook their heads. ‘We’ve had enough. We’re packing our things and getting out of here. The army has set up a boundary around the city. We’re heading that way if anyone wants a lift.’
There were nods and murmurs and plans were made. After a few more handshakes with Morgan the wondrous saviour, people started to disperse.
Only when we were alone again did I speak. ‘Maybe we should stop worrying about Rubus,’ I said. ‘It seems as if the apocalypse is already starting, regardless of the sphere.’
Morgan threw me a long, baleful look. ‘It’s only happening in Manchester,’ he said grimly. ‘Where the greatest concentration of faeries is. What happens if all this,’ he waved a hand at the devastated street, ‘starts happening in other places too?’
I considered. ‘Well,’ I said cheerfully, ‘you’ll be busy. You are, after all, the hero of this piece.’
He smirked. ‘Jealous?’
‘No.’
‘You look jealous.’
‘I’m not…’ Fortunately, I was prevented from having to defend myself. Further down, where Rubus’s lair was situated, a small group was emerging. I spotted Rubus, Julie, Finn, Lunaria and various others.
My mouth flattened. ‘Look who’s decided to come out.’
Morgan turned, his expression shuttering. Without another word, he strode towards his errant brother. I caught up, keeping pace with him. At least Julie looked okay. That was something. It was a damned shame that Rubus hadn’t had a tree slam him into a wall, though.
We drew up to Rubus and his crowd, maintaining a decent distance between us in case he decided to try anything. He looked relaxed, one eyebrow quirked as he gazed up and down the street. ‘Have you been making a mess, Morganus?’ he enquired.
Morgan growled. ‘This is merely a taste of what will happen if you use the sphere, Rubus. People almost died on this very street. Goodness only knows what’s happening across the rest of the city.’
Rubus clapped his hands to his cheeks in mock dismay. ‘Goodness only knows indeed!’
‘Our magic has done this,’ I said, adding weight to Morgan’s words in a bid to prove to Rubus’s minions that his lack of concern was criminal. ‘This isourfault. We can’t cast any more spells. Not if we want all this to stop happening.’
I spotted several pale faces but it was clear who was in charge. No one else spoke; there wasn’t so much as a murmur from the assembly.
Rubus shook his head sadly. ‘Madrona, Madrona, Madrona. Listen to yourself. You were so much more fun when you let your true self come to the fore. Heroism doesn’t suit you.’
Maybe not, but altruism was something that Rubus would never understand. I exhaled and met his eyes. ‘It’s not about heroism, it’s about self-preservation. You lot were lucky that a damned oak tree didn’t suddenly sprout underneath your feet. You’re lucky that the fire rain didn’t set your hair alight.’ I tilted my head. ‘You weren’t quite so lucky with those rats though, were you?’
