Page 77 of A Skirl of Sorcery
As soon as Dinsbury and Suzanne had left, Keres grabbed my elbow. ‘You let them think that powder killed him, but it was you. You ended that man’s life.’
‘I’m not sorry he’s dead.’
‘Neither am I.’
I nodded. ‘The truth about how Jimmy Leighton died will soon be revealed, but it won’t do those two any harm to believe that they killed a man for a few hours. Absorbing some ofyour magic has altered their perspective, and believing they’re responsible for the end of someone’s life will solidify their new outlook.’ Or so I hoped.
‘I don’t suppose your neighbours will think of you as capable of killing,’ Keres added. ‘He was a fucking bastard,’ she whispered.
I looked at the white bone boxes that surrounded us, the boxes of death. ‘That will be even more true when the full extent of his actions come to light.’
Keres glanced at his corpse. ‘Why did he do this?’
‘We’ll probably never know, except that he was a nasty wanker who enjoyed other people’s suffering and liked collecting weird shit.’
Keres pursed her lips then she shrugged. From the top of the stairs, there was a very loud miaow followed by another and another and another and another. ‘I told you lot to stay outside!’ I called.
Keres smiled. ‘Maybe it’s time you introduced me properly to your furry family.’ Maybe it was.
Back on the ground floor, I glared at the five cats, scolded them all in turn – and then fussed over each one in the manner of their choosing. Keres held back nervously, but when She Who Loves Sunbeams padded up and nudged her shoe with her pink nose, she crouched down and offered her a pat. Soon He Who Crunches Bird Bones, He Who Must Sleep and He Who Roams Wide had joined her.
She Without An Ear stayed where she was. Frankly I’d have been concerned if she hadn’t.
I picked up the backpack in Jimmy Leighton’s hallway and found three bone boxes inside. Only one had a label:Lone wolf.I clasped it tightly. I was holding Thane’s wolf in my hands.
He would be alright.Wewould all be alright.
‘We need to get out of here,’ I said. ‘I have to get this to Thane as soon as possible.’ I took a couple of steps towards the front door then stopped. Hmm.
Keres looked at me curiously. ‘Is everything okay, Kit?’
‘Yep. Just … give a minute. I need to fetch something else from the basement.’
He Who Crunches Bird Bones miaowed. ‘It’s okay,’ I told him. ‘I won’t be long.’ I knew what I was doing.
I didn’t waitoutside Leighton’s house with Keres, Suzanne and Arthur Dinsbury. The news of a dead body in circumstances such as these would bring Captain Montgomery and other members of MET running. Montgomery knew where I lived and he’d find me when he needed me. My immediate priority was my werewolf.
The moment I stepped across the threshold of my home, I knew that Thane was alert and conscious – mostly because I could hear him yelling at Tiddles through the bedroom door. ‘I’m fine! Get out of the way and let me leave!’ Several seconds passed. ‘Goddamnit, Tiddles!’
I smiled. That ginger cat was very impressive. It was tempting to linger in the hallway and continue to listen but it wouldn’t be fair. I knocked on the door and called, ‘It’s Kit. Can I come in?’
I heard a shuffling sound. ‘Yes! Come and rescue me from this damned ginger monster!’
I opened the door and stepped inside. Tiddles was on all fours, her tail whipping from side to side, her ears flat against her head and her claws at the ready.
‘I amnotin denial about what’s happened to me, Kit,’ Thane said as soon as I walked in.
I gazed at his face. He looked better than when I’d left now that the initial shock had worn off and he’d had some sleep, but without the return of his wolf soul that recovery could only be temporary.
His tone softened. ‘I’m not pretending that everything is hunky dory but I feel alright. Neither you nor Tiddles can make me stay in this room like some sort of invalid.’
‘You should give your cat more credit,’ I said. ‘She couldn’t stand to be in the same room as Keres because of the magical residue left inside her after her ban sith voice was stolen, yet your wolf has been taken and Tiddles has been alone with you with the door closed for a couple of hours. Whoever thinks that feline loyalty doesn’t exist ought to get themselves a Tiddles of their own.’
She purred briefly.
Thane glared. ‘I cannot believe you’re on her side.’
‘Her side is your side.’ I looked down at the cat. ‘You may stand down now.’
