Dead Red - M.R. Forbes Page 0,97

to ever roam the world.

"Conor," he said. His voice, unmistakable from our phone conversation, was crystal clear in my ears despite the barrier between us.

It was a struggle to take it all in. To believe it. I stared at the eye that stared back at me, frozen in shock until Sherlock swooped in front of it, his eyes catching mine before he flew off again. He was microscopic compared to him. How could he possibly get that big?

"Mr. Tarakona," I said, my voice betraying me and shaking more than I wanted it to.

"More than you expected."

"Almost more than I can believe."

"You above all should know there is more to this world than even the Houses understand."

"Do they know? Does Black know?"

"Sit, Conor. Are you hungry?"

I made my way over to the couch. "I could use some water."

The eye shifted the tiniest bit. Peter was standing behind me, and now he left the room.

"Peter will return with it. To answer your question, yes, I believe Black knows. The others? I don't think so."

"How? I mean, how could you survive the reversal? Shouldn't you have died with everything else?"

"The fields were never destroyed, only weakened, the softest whisper to the symphony around us today. I was weakened with it, but I didn't die. I slept. For many, many years I slept. Then the magic returned. So strong. So vibrant. You have already met the fruits of my labor. He is only returned to me because of you."

"I don't understand. Black found the-"

"Black took it." Tarakona's voice pounded in my ears, his anger backed with a vicious growl. "So much power rests in a hua. More than any man deserves. He sensed the power, he sought it out. I dare not risk exposing myself to this world directly. I am powerful, but I am not indestructible. I thought I had reached his son, convinced him to betray the father for what he had done. Instead, he planned to betray me. Until you came along." He paused. "Enemy turned ally, turned tama hononga. We had an agreement."

His giant eye blinked. Peter returned with a woman in a sharp suit. He was carrying water. She was carrying a briefcase.

I liked briefcases.

"I have something for you, too," I said. "From Jin. Ms. Red."

A deep, low coo sounded in my ears. "Ms. Red. The bonded. My apologies for not telling you the nature of things, Conor. The birth of a dragon is no easy thing. It is why there are only two."

"I'll be honest. I want to be mad about it. I can't. Not when she trusted me enough to trust you enough to give you this." I reached into my pocket and retrieved the data chip. "You know what it is?"

The eye narrowed. "Yes. I know."

"She died for your son, with the expectation that you would save her House."

Peter handed me the water. I took a sip of it. It was cold and pure. He used the same hand to reach out for the chip.

"Promise me that," I said. "Or promise her memory, I don't care. You know what Black wants to do. Someone has to keep him from doing it."

"I always intended to."

I dropped the chip into Peter's hand. The woman approached with the briefcase and offered it to me. I took it, surprised to find it wasn't that heavy. I knew from experience weight had no correlation to substance.

"Everything I promised you is in there, along with payment for a job well done."

"Thanks. What about my team?"

"I have included payment for the girl with yours. Amos has already received his compensation."

"You knew how to reach him?"

"He was much easier to locate than you were."

I was going to turn away, to leave this place before I could screw anything up. I approached the window instead, daring to move closer to that massive eye. Sherlock dropped down right in front of me, reaching out with his front claw and putting it to the window. I matched it with my hand, already smaller in scale. I could feel the mark on my neck heating up.

"You and my Ashiira are bonded, Conor. You are connected through the blood of the mother. Black has lost this battle, but the war is far from over. I may require your services again."

I smiled at Sher- Ashiira. In for a penny...

"Yeah, I figured you might. You know how to reach me."

"Thank you."

"De nada."

"Try to stay calm," Peter said, stepping up beside me. "This is for your protection as much as Tarakona's." He reached out and took the water from my hand.

"What?" I began to feel warm. Really warm.

"He will come for you if he thinks you know where to find me," Tarakona said. "You will remember this conversation, but not this visit."

Everything started getting darker. I glanced over at the water. Drugged? No. Tarakona didn't need to drug me to knock me out. I did as Peter said, staying calm and allowing myself to go blank. He was right. If Black knew that I knew... Of course, if Tarakona knew that I had any idea where Black was living, he might not have been so eager to let me leave.

"One more thing, Conor," Tarakona said.

It was as if all of existence was put on pause, leaving me in a weird half-intoxicated state of dizziness. I mouthed the word, "what," though I didn't hear any sound come out of my mouth.

"I was not the only thing that slept beneath the surface of a world without magic, and I am far from the most powerful or the most dangerous."

Time resumed, slowly easing me towards a state of unconscious. My limbs were numb, but somehow my hand found its way to where the mask rested in my pocket.

I expected to hear the laughter of a nameless, ageless thing.

There was only silence.