Hold Me Closer, Necromancer - Lish McBride [97]
I found the weak spot in the spell and did what Ashley said. It didn’t smash like I’d hoped. More like a slow chipping away. Sweat beaded on my forehead. We didn’t have time for chipping. I clenched my jaw, dug deep, and pushed all I had into that one spot.
The breaker tripped, and the glow of the spell on the cage vanished. “Done,” I said.
“Great,” Ashley said, “now we just need to pick the lo—”
I heard a dull snap.
“Never mind,” Ashley said.
Two seconds later, Brid’s face hovered over mine. She smiled, and it went all the way to her eyes. A quick kiss on my mouth, and then she started undoing the leather cuff that held my right hand. The clasp was rusty, but she got it undone fairly quickly. One arm freed, I motioned Brid toward my feet while I worked on the other arm.
The sound of the lock in the basement door being drawn made us both stop. Brid wouldn’t have time to free me completely. I mouthed the word hide at her and Ashley. Since I didn’t know who was coming downstairs, I didn’t want to say it out loud. I didn’t know what was fact or fiction yet about werewolves, but I didn’t want to risk Michael hearing us if the superhearing bit ended up being true. Added to my list of resolutions, right after never going to sleep again, I resolved to learn everything I could about everything.
Ashley disappeared in a blink. Brid crept under the stairs. She wouldn’t go back in that cage, not if she could help it. Which was smart. If she hid in there and ended up getting locked in again, then we were both up the stream sans paddle.
I slipped my right hand back into the restraint, doing my best to look tied up. The door banged open. I arched up and saw Michael coming down the steps, his arms full. I could see a big bowl and a few other things. He saw me and smiled.
“Good to see you awake,” he said, the shit-eating grin on his face getting bigger.
“And why is that?”
“I was afraid you might sleep through all the fun.” He set down his armload on the floor.
“You really don’t like me, do you?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Why?” I asked. “What did I ever do to you?”
Michael crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. “Can’t a guy just hate someone on sight anymore?”
“I guess if you’re a jackass, sure.”
Michael didn’t rise to the bait. He just grunted. He hadn’t once backed down from an insult so far. Michael was the kind of guy they invented the phrase “hair-trigger temper” for. I was curious. And afraid.
“How come you’re so chipper?”
“Because,” he said, “I finally get to help kill you.” He seemed really pleased about the prospect too.
My pulse sped up, but I tried to keep the smile on my face. It’s one thing to know there’s a chance people might kill you, or that it’s probable that they will kill you. But when they confirm it, with a smile, it’s a whole other thing altogether.
Douglas came down the steps, his sleeves rolled up and ready. His face serene, he walked slowly toward me.
“I thought you said you’d only kill me if I didn’t learn.” Douglas took his knife down off the bookshelf and studied it.
“I finally did something you told me to do, and I get trussed up for my effort. What gives?”
“You are too vexing to live.”
I waited for him to go on. Nothing. He just checked the edge of his knife.
“That’s it? C’mon, in the movies you can’t get a Bond villain to shut up. You’re not even going to outline your evil plan for me? Maybe if you pick up your cat and pet it while sitting in an oversized chair, something will come to you.” Was that Bond or Austin Powers? Or Inspector Gadget? It was amazing how easy it was to get those things confused. I didn’t actually want to hear what he had planned, or why I vexed him. My only thought at this point was buying Brid some time. I couldn’t look over at her. I just stalled and hoped.
“I’m not a Bond villain, just as you are no Sean Connery.” Douglas put the knife back on the shelf and went for a piece of chalk. “But out of pity, I will, as they say, throw you a bone.” He selected a large chunk of chalk that would have been more at home on a sidewalk hopscotch diagram. “I don’t know