Page 43 of Skullduggery
I glanced to my right. Gladys still lay too far away on the cobbles; I wouldn’t get to her before Vargas got to me. I glanced away again, then lifted my chin mutinously.
‘But if Athair had an adult child,’ Vargas said silkily, ‘I would have heard about it by now. He likes to boast, but he has never mentioned you. He would take great pleasure in telling me about you, especially after he went to such trouble to ensure my son, Fravock, did not live to meet his full potential.’
I sucked in a sharp breath, then I took a huge gamble. ‘He doesn’t know,’ I said in little more than a whisper. For all I knew, in 1994 that was the truth. ‘He doesn’t know I exist.’
Vargas circled me again. ‘I see.’ He clicked his tongue. ‘That is somewhat annoying, if it is true. There will be little enjoyment in watching Athair’s face when I tell him I have killed hislong-awaited child if he doesn’t know that child exists. But kill you I must. Athair on his own is bad enough – Athair with a dynasty would be far worse.’
I snorted. Loudly. Vargas stopped circling my body. ‘What?’
‘You think I want to be part of a dynasty with Athair?’ I spat. ‘I’ll see him dead long before that happens.’
‘You cannot kill a fiend,’ Vargas said. ‘And you certainly cannot kill Athair.’
‘You’re wrong. Enough of Athair’s blood runs through my veins that I’m more than capable of killing a fiend. In fact,’ I said airily, ‘I’ve already done so.’
Vargas’s head snapped towards mine. ‘Who?’
‘Does it matter?’ I didn’t take my eyes from him. ‘You know I’m not lying.’
He narrowed his gaze. ‘No,’ he said softly. ‘I don’t believe you are.’ He stared at me for another moment or two then stepped back. ‘It would be so delicious for you to meet Athair in battle,’ he breathed. ‘He would kill you before he knew the truth. He has wanted a child of his for so many generations. This would indeed be poetic.’
I chose my words with care. ‘You sound as if you don’t like him.’
‘Don’tlikehim? I do notlikeAthair?’ Vargas scoffed. ‘Idespisethat fucker! He murdered my child. He lords it over the rest of us. He thinks he is better than us – but he is not. He plays with the undead, but he does not command an army of them like I do.’
He waved at the collection of fallen vampires and Chuchi, none of whom were looking like particularly effective soldiers given that they were all very dead. ‘He does not respect what I do! He does not respect me!’ He thumped his chest and his eyes sparked with scarlet fury.
‘Uh-huh.’ I licked my lips. ‘Vargas, before you kill me,promise me one thing.’ He stared at me, and I continued quickly while I had his attention. ‘Promise me that one day you will kill Athair. I can go to my grave easily knowing that you will be strong enough to overthrow him.’
A scornful laugh escaped Vargas’s mouth but he covered it hastily. He didn’t want me to know that he would never be strong enough or brave enough to risk taking on Athair; if he were, he’d have attempted it when Athair killed his son. It was obvious Vargas valued his own existence far too much.
‘Perhaps,’ he said slowly, ‘there is another way. Perhaps I do not have to kill you.’
I waited. The idea had to come from him.
He nodded and his golden jowls jiggled. ‘Perhaps I can helpyouto kill Athair.’
I lowered my eyes so he didn’t see the glow of satisfaction in them. He didn’t believe for a moment that I was strong enough to hurt Athair; he only wanted to inflict as much psychological damage on his fiendish rival as he could. ‘You’re toying with me,’ I said aloud. ‘I know I cannot trust you.’
‘Oh really?’ Vargas sounded cool and I felt a flash of concern that I’d been too obvious. ‘You can trust me in this, Daisy Carter, daughter of Athair. I will prove it to you.’ He dipped his head towards mine. ‘If you want to control your magic, you have to lose it first.’
I stiffened. That was not what I’d been expecting. ‘What?’
‘Release all your magic in one go, empty yourself of every scrap of power. Once you have done that, and once your energy returns, you will be able to control yourself and the magic within you.’
I almost stopped breathing. Could that be right? Was that all it took to master my powers?
Vargas laughed at my expression. ‘It is true – try it and youwill see. Then maybe you will have a chance against Athair. Stranger things have happened.’
‘You will fight him alongside me?’ I asked.
‘I will do what is necessary,’ he replied. Clearly, he wasn’t prepared to make any promises.
I nodded. Then I brushed myself down and straightened the cuffs of my jacket. I checked the empty sheath by my side and went over to Gladys. With a thoughtful expression, I picked her up and re-sheathed her. She vibrated once: she understood.
I turned to Vargas and held out my hand. Triumph gleamed in his expression. He strode forward and stretched out his own hand to shake mine.
I smiled. Then, with as much speed and strength as I could muster, I snapped my hand back, yanked Gladys free and plunged her into Vargas’s chest.
