Alex Van Helsing Voice of the Undead - By Jason Henderson Page 0,57

conducting research for us in England. He’s been the target of several assassination attempts because he’s building a—let’s just say a new tool that will prove very useful.” Alex guessed Sangster was referring to Chatterbox.

“All in half a lifetime’s work.” The professor smiled.

“Ultravox was here to assassinate you so that the expert behind the database would be out of commission,” Alex said. “Assassinate you using teenagers.”

“Right,” said Sangster.

Alex thought about the events in the woods. “But why?” he asked. “I mean, why couldn’t Elle have just done it?”

“Right now we’re going on the because-it’s-dramatic theory,” Sangster said. “I know it’s unsatisfactory.”

“Let me see if I understand this theory,” Alex said. “The Scholomance knows that Professor Montrose is coming to Geneva. They want to assassinate him. So they bring in Ultravox to perform the assassination, and Ultravox devises a plan to recruit teenagers at the local girls’ school. He creates a vocal virus, a hypnotic spell, for them all to hear, and ensures that the book with the virus in it is put into the hands of someone who will be speaking to them all.”

Montrose flopped over a pair of gloves on the table. “And then once the virus is in their heads, Ultravox gives them the instructions. His voice is essentially unignorable. No one can overcome it, Alex. His voice threads the brain with his will, until you can’t hear anything else.”

“But there are boys at LaLaurie now. Boys are bigger. If Ultravox wanted to use students, boys might have given them a physical edge,” Alex said.

“You’re forgetting that you guys weren’t supposed to be at LaLaurie,” Sangster said. “The plan to pass the book to someone presenting to students was keyed on LaLaurie. It was aimed at girls.”

“What happened to the book you were given?” Professor Montrose interjected, leaning forward.

“Uh . . .” Alex realized that maybe destroying it hadn’t been the best course. It could have proved useful.

“We burned it,” Vienna said. Her brow was knitted with fury at having been manipulated by these people, and her tone said she didn’t regret destroying the book at all.

Montrose sighed, disappointed. “Ah, well. Undoubtedly we’ll find another copy.”

“What’s next for Ultravox?” Alex said.

Sangster shook his head. “All the chatter on him is quiet now. That either means he’s looking for a new way to get at Nathan or the Scholomance has no more use for him now that he’s failed this attempt.”

Montrose nodded in agreement. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we pick up that Ultravox will be . . . punished for that failure.”

Alex felt oddly unconvinced, but he didn’t have a better theory to suggest. A thought distracted him. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Sangster said.

“Why did you want Vienna to come to this meeting?”

Vienna looked at him angrily. “They wanted me to come? They summoned me and you were the delivery boy?”

“Well, they asked me to come, too,” Alex said. He saw her disappointment and felt his face grow hot. “I thought—I thought you liked the ride,” he said stupidly.

Professor Montrose leaned forward. “That scarf around your neck is the curse, is it not?”

She looked down, shifting her shoulders so that it danced slightly as if alive—which, Alex now knew, it was. “Yes.”

“We will find a cure for you,” the professor said. “If you’ll let us try.”

Sangster interjected, “And if you’ll let us keep the scarf after we manage to remove the curse.”

Vienna’s eyes were wide in something like disbelief. Alex jumped in. “Come on, you can’t make a bargain like that. Removing that thing is dangerous. The deal has to be that you make sure it doesn’t hurt her in the process.”

Sangster threw Montrose a look that said, See? He’s smart. “What kind of people do you think we are?”

“I’m just sayin’,” Alex said.

Vienna ran her fingers along the scarf. “Don’t listen to him; if you can cure me, you can keep it.”

“It will take some time,” Montrose said, “but now that I’m here and the lab is being set up, we have time.”

Alex realized that Vienna’s curse removal project likely meant he would be giving her frequent rides to the HQ.

I can handle that. But as Alex and Vienna rode back to town, there was a far-off buzzing in his head—not static, not magic, but something more personal and instinctive, as though he were missing something important.

Or maybe he was just afraid of having to wear a tuxedo.

Chapter 25

The next day was finally Friday. Alex, Paul, and Sid brought their clothes to the still-unoccupied New Aubrey